They All Lived Story 67: Shaking Things Up
by LadyWordsmith
Summary: March '85-February '86: Nothing stays quiet in the Elric family for long. Even Ed and Al can't take it easy dealing with the ups and downs, momentous family events, and the earth itself trying to get in the way of a nice family holiday. Relationships hit new points, and some will never be the same. What happens when one of the kids gets life-altering news?
1. Chapter 1

**March 1** **st** **, 1985**

It wasn't spring yet. It was too cold, but Edward didn't mind the briskness of the breeze that met him on the front porch of the hill house. The foothills and fields around Resembool were trying to make a valiant attempted at early spring, but they hadn't quite succeeded. Tiny heads of grass made green pinpoints in the dry brown grass, and the occasional purple crocus pushed its way up out of the dank black earth. The naked trees seemed to stand straighter, even if they weren't yet budding.

Ed was wearing his warm workout clothes and a windbreaker. At his feet, Mal looked ready to be off for their morning stroll.

"Can I come?"

Turning around, Ed saw Winry opening the front door, dressed for a walk, but in a thicker coat than his. He smiled. "Of course you can come. I thought you were sleeping in."

"I was," Winry admitted as she sidled up next to him, "But the bed's chilly without you."

"It won't be warmer out here."

"But the company's better."

"Well I can't argue with you there," Ed grinned, offering her his arm. "I was feeling lazy this morning, so we're just walking a few miles."

"Just a few miles," Winry repeated, shaking her head even as she slid her arm through his. "Did you have a particular destination in mind?"

"Not really." Ed led the way down off the porch and down the drive towards the road at the bottom of the hill. "Though I wouldn't object if it ended in town with coffee and breakfast." One of the new cafes that had opened recently had a wide selection of imported drinks, as well as great pastries. "Mal wouldn't object either." The dog loved their biscuit-wrapped sausages.

Winry sighed, but Ed could tell it was just for show. "Well, it would mean I didn't have to cook, and we could shop for baby gifts."

"As if you haven't already bought Trisha enough things," Ed teased her. They had both been pleased by their granddaughter's announcement a few weeks after Minxia's wedding, that she and Roy were expecting their third child. Franz, in particular, had lit up at the news. "There won't be anything left for Elena or Riza to buy."

"That's why we made lists," Winry informed him.

"Lists?"

"Of what they actually need, and who really wanted to help with what," Winry explained.

Ed watched Mal as the giant white dog stopped to sniff at a patch of buttercups. "Women coordinate the weirdest things."

"Have you ever tried to return a duplicate gift on something as large as a playpen?"

"Well, no," Ed admitted. "I suppose I see your point."

"Good." Winry nodded. "It's not like everything I've bought is for them. When I see things I think other people will like, I prefer to pick them up when I see them. There are always holidays and birthdays and reasons for gift giving."

"Yeah, but I don't think we know anyone else who needs baby things at the moment," Ed pointed out. At least, he didn't think anyone else in their family or circle of friends was currently pregnant. For once, Deanna wasn't! Their littlest girl, Dessa, was just barely a year old. None of his other grandchildren were expecting, and he knew that no one on Al's side was either. Despite plenty of jokes about Minxia and Thrakos, he had a feeling that they were taking precautions to be sure they didn't have any adorable little surprises before they wanted them. Surprises were possible, but unlikely.

"That doesn't mean they won't in the future," Winry replied, as if it were the most logical thing in the world. "It's like buying spare auto-mail parts, or craft supplies. Eventually, you can be almost certain they'll come in useful."

 **March 2nd, 1985**

Ian hadn't meant to lose track of the time. Trevor and Perry had suggested going over the next day's scene together as they left the set and he had met up with them at the nearby pub. There was a quiet back room they could reserve, and hang out and rehearse even as they relaxed over beers.

It was only after five times through the scene that Ian realized he was twenty minutes late to help Bonnie move a load of fabric from the store she had bought it from up to her apartment. It was for designs for the line Silverman's wanted to sell.

Ian walked quickly from the bar to the fabric shop, which was on the way to Bonnie's apartment anyway. When he got there, he was informed that the fabric had already been loaded into her car. _Well, shit._

At that point, Ian ran to Bonnie's apartment. He just hoped she wasn't too put out!

Her car was parked on the street, but it looked like Bonnie was just starting to unload. She had the back doors open and was reaching in for the first several bolts.

"I'm sorry I'm late," Ian gasped as he came to a stop next to the car. "We were rehearsing."

Bonnie looked up at him, her arms full of bolts of fabric. "Well you're here now. Help me get these upstairs."

Good, she only seemed slightly irritated. Ian grabbed half a dozen bolts himself and followed Bonnie up the stairs without complaint. It only took four trips to get everything up to the apartment. "Wow," he commented as he looked at the pile, which had taken over everything except the short sofa. "When are you going to find time to make all these?"

"In the evenings," Bonnie commented as she shifted the pile into organized chaos. "I have time."

It was true she wasn't a party animal, but Ian sometimes wondered if Bonnie was trying to become a fabric hermit. That would be a real shame. "Mind if I keep you company some evening while you sew?"

"Oh… well, I guess I wouldn't mind," Bonnie commented, though her tone was oddly distant. Maybe she was still miffed that he was late. "As long as you don't get in the way."

"I'll sit over… there," Ian grinned, gesturing at the couch as he moved around the pile of fabric. "I'll stay out of your way, I promise." He tried to move easily, but in trying not to hit a bolt of particularly expensive looking white silk he stumbled, and fell against Bonnie. He managed to grab her shoulders to avoid falling over. "Oh! Sorry I—"

"Ian!" She wobbled but didn't go over.

He held tight until he was sure neither of them was going to fall. "This place is a hazard," he laughed, though his hands lingered, perhaps a moment too long. He was frozen by the scent and feel of her, so close, momentarily overwhelmed his senses. They rarely touched, and it felt amazing.

" _Ian_."

"What?" He looked down, to find that her eyes did not reflect his own feelings.

"Could you move?" She asked, her voice strained. "You're… poking me."

He was too old to worry about embarrassment, but Ian hadn't realized his reaction to her proximity had been quite so obvious. "Sorry." He let go and stepped back, willing his body to stop reacting, even though he knew it was in vain. "I didn't mean to fall on you like that."

"I know." She took a step back and turned suddenly, moving the bolt of fabric to widen the walkway in her tiny living space. "It's fine. Forget it."

Ian felt a flash of irritation at her tone. What had he done to deserve such a sudden dismissal? They had been friends for long enough it shouldn't have been a big deal. "Did I do something wrong?"

"No. Like you said, it was an accident," but Bonnie didn't turn around. Instead, she remained busy, pulling sewing notions out of a shopping bag and starting to put them up in the sewing area that took up half the room.

"I mean before this," Ian clarified. "I thought we were friends, but lately it's almost like we just work together again."

Bonnie sighed. "It's nothing. Please, drop it."

"No. Not until you tell me what's wrong." A horrible thought struck him. "Do you have a boyfriend?"

"What? No!" Bonnie's head whipped around and she stared at him. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Well it seemed like a logical possibility," Ian pointed out. "I mean, why else would this have bothered you?"

"Your involuntary reactions are not my problem." Bonnie closed the cabinet with a slightly hard shove and turned away again, picking up the next bag; this one full of serger threads.

"It's not entirely involuntary."

It was a stupid thing to say, but Ian was tired of dancing around the issue.

Bonnie froze. "That's a really lousy line. I don't recommend using it in a film."

"I'm not kidding." Ian reached out and took hold of her arm. Not hard, just enough to try and turn her towards him. Bonnie resisted. "Don't tell me you haven't noticed how much I like you, Bonnie. I thought we were good friends. I care about you more than that."

"You've been drinking."

That made him angry. "A couple of beers over a script. I'm not drunk and don't try and change the subject. I've waited and waited for you to be more comfortable with me, to not be worried that I'm just here because you're hot. Which you are, by the way. But I… damn it I don't want to lose your friendship, but I'd be lying if I kept pretending I don't want more than that."

"So you've been helping out in the hopes of getting in my pants?" The fury flashing in her eyes as Bonnie glared up at him took Ian by surprise.

"No! Damn it." Ian tightened his grip as she tried to pull her arm out of his hand. "I talked to Grandpa because I think you're one of the most talented designers I've ever seen! I just wanted to help if I could, but I have no doubt you'd have gotten here on your own without me. But me… I couldn't be here without you."

"Damn right you couldn't," Bonnie replied. She did not sound mollified. She didn't believe him. That much was clear.

"I love you."

"Don't say that."

"Why not?"

"Ian. Let go of me!"

This was not going the way he had hoped… but he probably should have expected it. "Fine." He dropped his hand. "But I do love you." It was easier to say it the second time.

"Do you even know what love is?" Bonnie rubbed her arm lightly with one hand.

"I can't believe you'd ask that." Ian took a step back. She knew his family, his history. Maybe she didn't know him as well as he thought.  
"Why not?" Bonnie picked up a magazine off her table and shoved it in his face. "You haven't changed much."

Ian had to back up another step to focus on the picture that she had thrust at him. It was a shot from one of the recent film after parties, and he was dancing with one of his co-stars from the film, Yana Bines, a very busty half-Aerugian in a tight purple dress. From the camera angle, it looked like she might pop out of it at any minute, though Ian knew that wasn't likely to have happened. He'd seen the article last week: the usual trash about likely romances between him and his co-stars. Given the way his hands were placed in the photo, it certainly looked like he was all over her.

He felt even angrier that she would take it seriously. _Damned press._ "It's just a gossip rag," he replied, scowling. "If I'd ever touched Yana in the wrong place she'd have hit me."

"That assumes that's a wrong place."

"Will you _stop it_?" Ian shouted, knocking the magazine out of his face. "I can't believe you'd believe any of this trash. You _know_ me! At least, I thought you did. Now I wonder if you even see me as myself." He wasn't trying to loom over her, but his height made it difficult not to in the tight space. "Or if you're trying to project your own ideas on me as a way of keeping me away? Because right now you're treating me like I'm some kind of ass after I've bent over backwards -willingly- to try and be the best friend I can be to you because I wanted to spend time with you. But this— this is ridiculous. I haven't been with a woman in three _years_. Why? Because I didn't want to disappoint you. Because I wanted _you_. What we have is so easy, so _real_. I don't want a supermodel, Bonnie. I want someone better than that. _You're_ better than that. You're talented, and intelligent, and independent, and capable, and yes, you're beautiful. I think you're the most amazing woman I've ever met, and I thought we were perfect… together. But… if that's how you see me…I don't know what else to do anymore." His momentum fell away as his emotions overwhelmed him. He shouldn't have said anything, shouldn't have started it. If he had never told her, she wouldn't be looking at him that way. He pushed her aside and moved towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Bonnie gasped, getting her words back instead of staring at him in shock. She spun, her eyes following him.

Ian paused long enough to look back at her. "To go do something incredibly stupid, because clearly I'm the king of that." Then he was out the door, slamming it behind him as he hurried down the hall, the stairs, and out onto the street. He thought he heard Bonnie shouting at him from her doorway, but he was sure it was wishful thinking. He kept moving.

He didn't want her to see the tears threatening in his eyes.

* * *

Bonnie stared out her door for several minutes, stunned, hurt, and then the guilt set in. He hadn't come back. She had shouted after him, but Ian had vanished into the night. Finally, she acknowledged to herself that he wasn't coming back and closed the door. With a deep, shuddering sigh, she leaned her back against the door, letting her head tilt back until all she saw was the ceiling. "I am such an idiot," she said to the silence. It didn't contradict her.

Nothing else was going to happen tonight if she didn't move. Reluctantly, Bonnie returned to straightening supplies, and fitting bolts into the racks she had set up in the second bedroom of her small apartment. Still, the night was ruined, and it was her fault. Her and her stupid fears, and her lousy taste in men.

Maybe if she had ever really told Ian about her past, he would have understood. Bonnie had told him her ex-boyfriends were losers, and the reason she didn't date actors or musicians… or anyone. Not anymore.

There were only so many times Bonnie could rearrange her sewing notions. Once everything was put away she gave up, went to the kitchen, and made herself a cup of strong, dark coffee. She should call Ian. He was surely home by now. It wasn't that late. Or maybe he wasn't. He'd said he was going to go do something stupid. That meant he was probably out somewhere getting drunk. Wasn't that exactly one of the reasons why she wasn't seeing him?

Even so, the excuses sounded thin, even in her mind. Intellectually, she was fully aware that Ian was not Rodney. He wasn't Jason.

But then, Rodney and Jason hadn't seemed like Rodney and Jason.

Rodney hadn't ever really been much of an actor, but he'd been good looking, he'd had a promising looking career in television dramas, and he'd been cute. Really cute. _We'll show the world, baby, you and me. We'll be something special._

Lying piece of shit. Six months and he was gone, on to someone else, and she'd been one of almost a dozen girls he'd been with in that time; eleven other girls she hadn't known about, even though she'd been at the same parties he was at almost every time. She had been young, and stupid.

 _I'm still stupid._ She sipped her coffee, trying to get Rodney's face out of her mind, his words out of her head. He'd always been encouraging, and he'd seemed kind and attentive. Apparently he'd been a better actor than she gave him credit for.

Jason.

Her body shuddered involuntarily. Somehow, his betrayals had always been more personal. In the end, she still wasn't sure how she had found the strength to break it off. _You owe me, babe. You'd be nothing but a bit of trash in an alley without me. You wanna tell me what to do? Nobody tells me what to do. I'm the king of my own world. You wanna be queen, you do what I tell you._ She could still hear him yelling, see the crazed look in his eyes, smell the drugs on him… feel his hands on her…

Her coffee tasted salty.

It wasn't fair, but how could she explain to Ian? How could she tell him how it felt to realize you knew nothing about the person you loved, or to fear them? She didn't want to get involved with anyone else, because she was lousy at it. No matter how much her brain understood that the man in front of her was probably a perfectly nice human being, her heart always panicked when a guy made a move.

It had taken her years to become comfortable having him as a friend. Bonnie only had a few men in her life she felt safe around as more than acquaintances. If she didn't have to date them, she was fine with them. If they weren't involved, it didn't matter so much.

 _Why did you have to say "I love you?"  
_

She should have seen it coming. Ian had never tried to pretend he didn't find her attractive, but unlike most of the other men who hit on her, he had taken the time to get to know her, to become friends, to care… and she had never really told him what still freaked her out. So she'd panicked, and pushed him away again.

The worst part was that she didn't hate him. She liked him, as a lot… Bonnie knew she could love him if she let herself. She had never been good at controlling her own feelings, as much as she pretended she did. But, she didn't want to drive him away, she just wanted things to stay how they were; safe, and comfortable. That wasn't going to happen. Ian was a passionate, honest person, and she couldn't expect him to change his own feelings just to suit her insecurities.

 _Why is it so hard to say 'I love you' back?_

 **March 3** **rd** **, 1985**

"Honey, I love you, but I really think you should go home," Roy said softly, though Tore could hear him from only two desks away.

Tore tried very hard not to smile at the futility of Roy's request as Trisha gave her husband an annoyed glare. This scene had played out so many times over the past couple of weeks; Tore and Cal were considering turning it into a drinking game.

He hadn't mentioned that to Roy and Trisha.

"I'm going to be stuck at home for the next several months," Trisha pointed out. "I can be here, making sure that my work isn't left unfinished for someone else to do inadequately, or I can sit at home doing very little of use and driving myself nuts. I think I'd rather be here."

"So you said when we dropped the kids at school this morning," Roy grumbled. "You're supposed to be taking it easy."

Trisha gestured to the footstool under her desk, the pillow on the back of her chair, and the large glass of water on her desk. "How is this not taking it easy?"

Roy looked like he was doing his best not to explode, though probably more from frustration than anger.

Tore sympathized, but Trisha had always been stubborn about working up to the last minute in her last two pregnancies, so even now, less than a week from d-day, he felt like Roy should have gotten used to it by now; and if the doctors hadn't ordered her home, he knew Cal wasn't going to do it either.

"Hey, Closson, I'd like to see you in my office for a minute."

Tore looked up and saw Cal standing at his door. "Sure." He grabbed the reports he had just finished and followed Cal back to his friend's desk. It was sort of amusing, he thought, being promoted to his friend's second, as things went. Marcus Kane had finally retired a couple of months before, and Cal had been promoted in his place, putting him effectively in charge of the entire State Alchemist program.

Cal was still making jokes about it, but Tore thought he was getting used to that third star on his shoulder. Certainly Alyse had made a huge deal out of it.

"What's up, boss?" Tore grinned as the door clicked shut behind him.

Cal chuckled as he returned to his seat and leaned back. "Enjoying the show?"

Tore shrugged. "It's a rerun."

"Makes me glad we're well past that stage," Cal nodded as he gestured for Tore to take a seat.

Tore obliged. "I'll say. Though I'm not sure watching the kids go off to college will be much easier." Dare was graduating in just a couple of months, and had already turned in his paperwork to enlist in the military. His first post would be North City. His girlfriend, Lorraine, planned to follow him up there.

Cal nodded. "Gloria's already got her acceptance letter from ECU. I swear she's already packed. I don't know how anyone survives letting their kids go off on their own."

"Especially beautiful daughters?" Tore chuckled. Gloria turned heads already. Putting her on a college campus full of hormonal young men was going to be interesting. Tore was just glad Cami was far too young to go.

"I'm not sure whether to be relieved or worried that her last boyfriend didn't work out." Cal picked up a glass of water from his desk and took a drink. "She'll be surrounded by stupid young men I can't do anything about."

Tore didn't point out that they had both qualified as _stupid young men_ in spades at one point in time, and they had both turned out all right. "At least it wasn't a nasty break-up, so you don't have to worry about someone catching her on the rebound. In any case, you didn't call me in here to talk about your parental insecurities."

"I might have," Cal countered, before he shrugged. "I was wondering what you had in mind for the departmental reassignments coming up?"

Tore pulled out the roster he had brought with him, expecting that question. In order to keep things tidy, and on the up-and-up, Cal's promotion and other subsequent shifts underneath him had meant some personnel shuffling in the department. Particularly when it came to couples, since that meant they were under different commanding officers. Tough to do in a department as small as the State Alchemists, unless they worked under the Laboratories, which Tore knew Cal was glad worked with general autonomy, sending in reports on their workings in a timely manner. Tore had gotten Trisha. "I thought we might see if Trisha would like to take over some of the training duties," he said as he watched Cal scan the page. "The hours are more regular than street patrols and special assignments." Safer too. He knew Franz wouldn't turn down an assignment that kept Trisha out of the crossfire as much as possible.

"It's also not a sideline job," Cal nodded. They both knew Trisha would be upset if she thought anyone was keeping her out of harm's way just because she was a woman, and a mother. Tore would never have suggested that she couldn't manage the work. Trisha was too much like her mother. The job had a lot of upward mobility in the ranks, and he wanted someone in there he could trust not to lose their temper and blow off some poor student or new State Alchemist's head. "I approve. The whole list looks good. I'm impressed you managed to cover everything with as few changes as you did."

"Efficiency means less work for all of us," Tore grinned. "Sometimes being efficient isn't much different than being lazy."

"Don't tell Alyse that," Cal smiled wryly. "She has some very strong opinions on the subject."

* * *

Bonnie didn't say a word to Ian as she did his make-up in wardrobe. Not that Ian expected any differently. Not after the way he had blown up at her last night. Not a word. Not about the circles under his blood-shot eyes, not about the fabric from last night, and definitely not about what he had said the day before. In some ways, Ian was glad. In others, it was absolute torture.

Was this it? No more bantering in the chair; no more conversations while she fitted his costumes? Would she even be willing to work on set with him anymore? Not that she really had a choice if she wanted the big jobs. Tanner would never letter her turn those down. She was too talented.

Ian had spent a very lonely, miserable evening drunk on his couch. Alone, because he hadn't felt like finding a one-night stand. Drunk… because hey, why prove her wrong? It was petty, but Ian hadn't cared at the time. He had confessed his love, and she had freaked out. That wasn't how that was supposed to go.

Bonnie's eyes looked puffy, he noticed, as if she'd been crying.

 _Good_ the hurt, selfish part of him said. Yesterday her accusations had hurt him even more deeply than he had thought possible. And yet, all he wanted to do was comfort her and ask what was wrong; except, he knew the answer.

He was wrong.

"Ian."

"What?" he looked up at her, startled.

"I'm finished."

"Oh. Thanks." Ian stood up and pulled on the jacket he was wearing in the next scene. He wanted to say more, but they weren't alone. At the other end of the trailer, Perry was in make-up, while Anette styled his hair to his character's usual over-greased perfection.

Bonnie seemed to feel just as awkward. She opened her mouth as if she wanted to speak, but then closed it and turned away, her face flush. He couldn't wait any more to get on set. She said nothing else as he walked out of the trailer.

It was almost worse than a break-up to Ian, because they'd never been a couple. Years of patience, of hoping, of imagining how he might convince her that his feelings were genuine. He had thought their friendship was stronger than this, and now he wasn't sure she would ever willingly speak to him again outside of necessity.

He would have to try though. Ian didn't think he could just leave it like this. It was too unresolved. He would have to find time later, and talk to her. 

* * *

_Author's Note: 12/22/2015 Happy Winter Solstice! (Or Summer if you're reading from the other hemisphere!) Hope everyone is enjoying your season, whatever your celebrations of choice may be. :) Welcome to the next story! Expect to see a lot of many old friends: Ed, Al, Winry, we'll see some forward progress in the lives of Urey (will he ever break out of his funk?), Ian (will he 'ever' get together with Bonnie?), Ted, Roy and Trisha, Cal and Alyse... so many kids growing up, going to college, moving on with life. Lots of big challenges and adventure ahead. The world's changing and there's a lot going on! Enjoy!_


	2. Chapter 2

**March 6** **th** **, 1985**

"I think some of you need to get new fall hobbies," Ed chuckled as he looked at the list of names on the table between himself, Winry, Aldon, Cassie, Reichart, and Deanna. Between March, April, and May, his great-grandchildren alone had five birthdays coming up. All but one of those children belonged to Reichart and Deanna, with that one exception being Urey's son Yurian.

"What's wrong with celebrating Fall Festival?" Reichart asked, pretending to take offense. His large grin ruined it.

"Nothing, at least not until your house runs out of room," Ed quipped. His grandson and his wife had already beaten Aldon and Cassie in by-blood children, with six. While their house was good sized, they had already filled the large bedrooms. Rhiana, the eldest, was twelve, and had her own room for the most part, though she was sharing with baby Dessa at the moment, her only sister. With the five boys, the oldest two –Owen and Cailean- shared a room, and the younger two- Hrafn and Lochlan- had the other. If they had any more kids, they were going to have to start tripling up.

"We can always add on," Reichart shrugged.

Deanna punched him lightly on the arm. "Why don't _you_ carry any more kids, and I'll build the house extension?"

"Building is less work," Aldon nodded, giving his son a smug look.

"You know what," Reichart said, "Why don't we get back to work on these party plans?"

Ed chuckled, and looked at the lists of kids, friends, theme ideas, and present lists in various levels of scribbled handwriting. "You're not planning on having five parties?" It would be insane.

"Oh, of course not," Deanna said, taking her eyes off Reichart and looking back down at the lists. "We'll just do one big one."

"It's easier to get Urey to come if there's more than one person celebrating," Deanna commented.

"Yeah and… we thought it might be easier on him if Yurian's party wasn't on his actual birthday," Reichart added.

"That's very considerate," Winry commented, and Ed nodded agreement. Yurian's birthday would always be hard for Urey. Ed had accepted that. It would always be darkened by death, even six years later. Yurian had started school and was in the kinder-class that year, and doing very well.

Ed wished his grandson took more pride or interest in his son. Perhaps, at least, with the party on a different day, Urey would be more involved. "Shouldn't Urey be helping plan this?" he suggested, knowing that even if they asked—like they did every year—it would probably be futile.

His suggestion got the same skeptical looks that it usually did whenever they tried to get Urey involved in anything that involved social interactions. Sometimes Ed still wondered how they had convinced him to go to Minxia's wedding. He had hoped the change of scenery would cheer him up, but Urey had come back in as much of a funk as ever.

"Forget I said anything." Ed sighed and looked down at the pile of papers. "So, what do you have in mind so far?"

"Oh lots of things," Cassie grinned, spreading things out so everyone could see. "On top of that addition you two are putting on the playground, we're going to be borrowing ponies from Deanna's family farm."

"Do the ponies know about this?" Winry asked with a chuckle.

"They're used to kids climbing all over them," Deanna assured her. "Even the kids who don't know how to ride won't bother them. So we'll be setting up a bunch of simple games you can play on the ponies."

"That does sound like fun." Ed looked at the list of games, that involved carrying eggs on spoons, taking on and off costumes, all things that could be done in teams, usually relays, that didn't require having a pony for every child, which was good, because the guest list looked like it including at least half of the children in Resembool! It was only natural though, given the varying ages of the children having parties. "Is there anyone you didn't invite?"

"Actually… no," Aldon admitted with an abashed smile. "Being mayor and having a lot of very popular grandkids makes that a little hard."

"Which doesn't mean everyone will _come_ ," Cassie pointed out reassuringly. "People have lives, but it would have been rude not to invite everyone when we were inviting so many already. Aldon's exaggerating though. We only invited the children in the same grades, which also includes their siblings."

"Which might as well be everyone," Ed pointed out. "Looks like you and I are going to have to work fast on that extension," he said to Aldon, who nodded.

"I'm sure we'll get it done, Dad. The plans are done, and I've already got the supplies. When's the party?"

"April first."

"Of course it is." A month to build the thing; Well, at least he knew how he'd be getting in his workout for the next few weeks.

 **March 8** **th** **, 1985**

Riza sat with Maes and Elena in the waiting room of the hospital, as she had been for the past several hours, ever since Roy had called just after midnight and told them that Trisha had gone into labor and they were headed to the hospital. Roy's sister Rochelle had been staying at their house the past four nights, so they didn't have to wait for someone to come take care of Rosa and Gabriel.

Now it was nine in the morning, and all they could do was wait. They had only seen Roy once since arriving, when he had come out to get coffee and give them the progress report; things were moving fairly quickly, Trisha was in a lot of pain, but there weren't any complications to be worried about. Then her bleary-eyed grandson had vanished to be with his wife.

"Did I get here first?"

Riza looked up and saw Rochelle's boyfriend, Nathan, enter the room carrying a cardboard drink carrier full of hot drinks. "I take it Rochelle called?"

He nodded, set down the drinks on the small table, and took off his sunglasses and blinking sleepy red eyes. His short white hair was rumpled, as if he hadn't combed it after crawling out of bed. "She said she and the kiddos would come over in a bit. I brought coffee. Not sure if I got the orders right, but there should be something for everyone."

"Thank you, Nathan," Riza smiled as she took the cup he offered. He was so considerate. The first sip told her he had gotten her preference right; thick and black with extra sugar. "How did you get them to make it this dark?"

"I told them extra-sludge," he teased as he gave Maes and Elena their drinks, bright teeth flashing in his deeply tanned face.

Maes took a sip, and smiled in bemusement at his daughter's beau. "They must have someone from the military working there."

"Or one of their kids," Elena suggested, sipping hers more delicately. Of course, Elena preferred hers heavily mixed with cream and honey in the Aerugean fashion. "Though I don't know how you drink it," she said, eyeing Maes with a well-practiced look.

Maes chuckled. "It's an acquired taste."

"Years of slowly killing your taste buds," Riza nodded. _Her_ Roy had always drunk it straight, black—or spiked, off duty.

"I'll be sure to avoid that then," Nathan said as he sat down in one of the other uncomfortable hospital chairs to wait with them. He offered Mireia a cup as well.

"What's this?" Maes and Elena's twelve-year-old daughter asked curiously.

"Hot chocolate with whipped cream."

That elicited a delighted squeal before the girl beamed at Nathan and took her drink off to a corner where she could sit down.

"What are you drinking?" Riza asked him curiously.

"Something 'Chelle suggest actually," he replied. "It's got cream and caramel in it."

"That sounds decadent."

"Yeah well, she's got great taste."

"At least you hope she does," Théa commented as she walked into the waiting room looking far more put-together than Nathan's clean-but-rumpled appearance. She was dressed for work, in a skirt and blouse, her dark hair curled and without a single bit of frizz.

"I like to think so, anyway," Nathan agreed, holding out another cup. "Hazelnut mocha latte, skim milk, no whipped cream, right?"

Théa looked impressed, then took the cup. "You train fast. She can keep you."

"You're not the only one who gets to weigh in on that decision," Maes pointed out.

Riza leaned back and listened contentedly to her favorite sound; happy family banter. Nathan might not be family yet, but she had a feeling the good looking young man wasn't going anywhere in the near future. He and Rochelle were a very good match, in her opinion. Just as good as Théa and her fiancé, Nikolaos Ionnatos, who worked at the National Museum of Amestris in the antiquities wing.

In moments like this, she wondered what Roy would have thought of it all.

"We're here," Rochelle announced as she came in with Rosa and Gabriel in tow. The two kids looked far more alert than anyone else. Of course, they had gotten the most sleep.

"Any news?"

"Nothing lately," Maes shook his head. "We're just waiting."

"Isn't that always how it is?" Rochelle asked with a smile as she leaned over and kissed Nathan briefly. "My hero," she smiled as she took her cup out of the cardboard container.

There were also hot chocolates for Rosa and Gabriel, who went to sit with their "aunt" Mireia. Given there was only a little over five years between Mireia and Rosa, they acted more like cousins. Rosa was seven, and Gabriel four.

By the time most of the drinks were gone, it was late morning, not that Riza was impatient. These things took the time they took, and each time was different. While she had only had the joy of one child of her own, that son had provided her plenty of grandchildren.

Finally, Roy put in another appearance. "Looks like the gang's all here."

"Daddy!" Rosa jumped up and practically tackled Roy in a hug. A moment later Gabriel crashed into his legs as well. "Is the baby here?" Rosa looked up at him excitedly.

Roy beamed through his exhaustion as he bent down and hugged his kids. "Yes, yes, the baby's here. You wanna see?"

"Yes!" Rosa squeaked. "Come on!" She grabbed his hand and started dragging him back.

"Just a moment, Rosebud," Maes said, scooping his granddaughter up of the ground for a moment, and giving her a squeeze. "Babies need quiet, remember? You wouldn't want to wake it up."

"Oh… I guess not." Rosa pouted slightly, but calmed down.

"Speaking of 'it," Riza said as she stood up. "What is it, Roy?"

He flushed with pleasure. "It's a girl."

* * *

The hospital room was crowded, but Trisha didn't mind. She had assured Roy that it was all right to bring his entire family in at once. Then the visit would, in theory, be shorter, and then she could get some much needed sleep. Her own father, she had been assured, was on the way over. Her brother, and other extended family members, would be coming by later. Trisha wondered if anyone had argued over who got to visit in what shifts.

"She's darling," Elena cooed over her newest granddaughter. "What a beauty."

Trisha had to admit, of her three children, this one had probably been born the prettiest looking. Usually babies looked a little odd at birth, or wrinkled, and red. "Sara's definitely a beauty," she said, beaming despite her exhaustion. She and Roy couldn't imagine naming her anything else.

"Sara?" A moment later, her father appeared in the crowd, and Maes moved aside to make room.

Trisha nodded, feeling a sudden lump in her throat at the expression on her father's face. "Sara Jesenia," she nodded. Jesenia had been Elena's grandmother's name, and Trisha had wanted to be sure to use names from both sides of the family.

For several long moments, her father simply stared at the baby, and then he smiled through unshed tears. "She's going to be a handful."

Trisha nodded, smiling back. "I hope so."

Rosa and Gabriel, who were crammed up on the other side of the bed so they could watch their sister, giggled.

For her part, little Sara remained asleep.

It was only when the crowd had finally been hustled out of the room that Trisha rested her head back in the pillows and closed her eyes, letting her exhaustion have her.

"You all right, babe?" Roy sat down on the edge of the bed. She could feel it move, and his warm presence.

"You didn't tell them."

Roy's hand squeezed hers. "Hey. You're fine. Sara's fine. I… the last time I saw them there wasn't a reason to say anything."

Trisha opened her eyes. "They need to know, Roy."

Her husband looked abashed. "I know. I just didn't want anyone bothering you."

"Well you make sure to tell at least your parents and Dad before they find out and panic," Trisha scolded him gently. She didn't have the energy for much else. Other than being fast, the delivery had been going fine until near the end. Some internal tearing –and a very large head—had led to the need for surgery. In the end, she and the baby were fine, so Trisha was not particularly upset about the result, but she knew that as much as she hurt now, when the pain medication finished wearing off, she was going to be in a lot of pain. It would have been worse if Lara Rafton—one of the new alchemically trained doctors at the hospital—hadn't been available. The surgery had been unavoidable, but the delivery could have been far worse. "I'm going to need some help around the house." It would be a week or two before she was comfortable moving around much, or so she had been told.

"I have time off," Roy reminded her.

Trisha managed a smile. "Do you really want to tackle three kids and the house?"

Her husband seemed to think better of that idea. "You're right. I'll tell them when the kids aren't around."

"That's fine." They didn't need to know the details of their baby sister's arrival. Trisha looked back down at the sleeping bundle in her arms. The wrinkled face, when awake, revealed blue eyes, but she didn't know how long they would stay. The same with the indeterminate fluff on her head, that was somewhere between blonde and brown. "I wish Mom could have met her."

"I do too," Roy kissed the top of her head as he settled down closer. He smelled comfortingly of coffee and yesterday's cologne. His right arm slid around her shoulders, so that her head rested on his shoulder instead of the pillow. "I know she'd be proud of you, though. You kept your cool and handled everything like a pro."

"Not sure we're remembering the same delivery," Trisha replied, "But I _have_ done this before you know." She certainly hadn't felt calm when the pains had gotten worse than anything she had experienced with either of her other two children.

"Oh I remember," Roy chuckled. "How could I forget? After Rosa you threatened to castrate me."

"And if I had, we wouldn't be here now."

"Yeah, thanks for leaving me intact." Roy gave her shoulders a gentle squeeze. "I wouldn't trade our children for anything. Look at her," his voice took on a note of adoration as he looked at Sara. "She makes our family complete."

"She does," Trisha agreed, stifling a yawn that broke through her smile. She was so tired. "And that means we're done."

"Oh yes, definitely," Roy agreed without hesitation, which was good, because Trisha might have hurt him otherwise. That was, if she could have moved.

"Good, cause Uncle Ethan knows an alchemical procedure for that."

 **March 11** **th** **, 1985**

Ethan hummed to himself as he quickly chopped the carrots and celery on the cutting board in the kitchen, the rhythmic noise making a great beat for the song that had been in his head since he got out of the car. It had been one of his less stressful days at the office; no emergency calls to the hospital, no bad news to give patients, just routine checkups and catching up on the filing.

He heard keys in the door and the dog barking before he heard Lia and Aeddan's footsteps as his wife and youngest child came in the door. Not that 'youngest' meant much. Aeddan would be turning fourteen at the beginning of April. "So how was practice?" Ethan called as he heard a soccer ball bounce across the floor.

"We rocked it!" Aeddan grinned as he bounded into the kitchen, followed by Lia. "We're gonna kill them on Saturday. Is dinner ready, I'm starving?" He grabbed an apple out of the fruit bowl on the table and bit into it without waiting for a response.

"It will be in an hour," Ethan replied, chuckling. "As soon as these are done, the roast is going in the oven."

"Thank you," Lia kissed his cheek. "It's so nice not to be the one making dinner all the time."

"Well I've always been averse to starving," Ethan pointed out good-naturedly. This year had been a different, but not unenjoyable, schedule once the family had fallen into the new rhythm and routine. Having Eamon and Lily at college had made things a little less hectic. Lia's new job teaching at the University was hectic and busy, but not at all in the same way as teaching high school. Ethan had tried not to tease her when she exclaimed in the first couple of weeks that it was so much _easier_ than having to get high schoolers to behave and pay attention. She had been quite amused to discover that a couple of her students this year were kids she had once taught in high school, who had decided they wanted to go into teaching.

Aeddan was in his last year of middle school, and outside of the soccer team, spent most of his time doing homework and hanging out with his friends.

"You'd never know it from looking at you," Lia teased. "I've known you for decades and I still have no idea where you're putting it all."

"Brains, of course."

"Naturally." Lia set her shoulder bag down on the little side table just outside the kitchen door and went to the sink to wash her hands. "We stopped by Trisha and Roy's on the way home."

"How are they doing?" Ethan asked. He had been by to visit late on their first day in the hospital, but he hadn't had a chance to stop by since then.

"Glad to be home finally," Lia replied. "Trisha's still awfully sore, but little Sara's doing great. She eats like a champ and she's not too fussy as newborns go."

"That's good," Ethan smiled, though he felt a small twinge at his new grandniece's name. He would get used to it. He loved that Trisha had named her baby after her mother, but it did make him miss his sister all over again. "How are Rosa and Gabriel handling things?"

"They haven't gotten past the magic of having a baby sister," Lia chuckled. "They want to spend every moment they can with her, and help if they're allowed. Roy tells me that Rosa has already learned to change diapers."

Aeddan made a face. "Eww."

Ethan shook his head as he finished the last vegetables and slid them off the cutting board into the roasting pan. He handed the dishes off to Lia to wash, and grabbed potholders so he could put the roast in the oven. "Be grateful you were the youngest."

Aeddan grinned and shrugged. "Not like I had a choice, but thanks."

"How about you take the dog for a walk?" Lia suggested as she finished washing the knife and cutting board, then set them aside to try. "Then you can take a shower."

"Is that a subtle way of saying I stink, Mom?"

"Yes," Ethan cut in as he finished putting in the food. "Now get moving."

"Yes, sir." Aeddan grabbed the leash off the hook on the wall. "Come on Bridgette!"

"When did he get so snarky?" Ethan commented as the front door slammed again a few seconds later.

"He's making up for Eamon and Lily," Lia said, chuckling. "It's hard being the only child at home. Surely you remember that."

"I do." Ethan had been a little younger than Aeddan when both Sara and Aldon had moved out of the house. Having the twins gone, and in opposite directions, had been a very strange experience the first few months, though it had been good to have them back at the winter break. The twins had been almost inseparable during those short weeks. Given this had been their first time apart for any lengthy period of time, Ethan could understand that, given how close they had always been. At least they were both happy and thriving in their chosen environments. Lily was vibrant, getting good grades in everything, and still seeing her long-time boyfriend, Randy. Eamon was likewise doing well in school, though he admitted he hadn't gotten involved with anyone, though he had enjoyed a few casual dates with a handful of girls he had met in different classes. Aeddan was adjusting well enough to being the only kid home. He certainly liked the attention. "Though part of me still feels like I should make him stop."

"Is it possible to make an Elric boy stop smarting off?" Lia asked. "If so, I'd love to learn."

Ethan looked at her smug little smile, and shook his head. "Of course not. We don't know how else to communicate."


	3. Chapter 3

**March 15** **th** **, 1985**

It was unseasonably warm for a mid-March evening in East City, not that Lily Elric was complaining as she strolled through the large park, hand-in-hand with Randy, who she thought looked particularly handsome this evening. Not that he didn't always look good, but there was something about tonight. His light brown wavy hair was windblown as ever. His soft green eyes danced with humor whenever they talked, but that was normal too. His outfit wasn't particularly different: clean jeans, a clean slate blue t-shirt, with a blue-and-gray button down flannel open over it; a nod to the remaining coolness in the air.

"So what is this play we're going to see tonight?" Lily asked. She hadn't had time since Randy had told her, just the day before, that there would be a play in the park this evening.

"It's called _Songs of Summer Crickets_. I know, it sounds weird, but it's supposed to be a really good love story. Some friends of mine in the theatre department are doing it as their midterm performance piece for a class. I promised to come be part of the audience."

"In case they don't get an audience?" Lily asked knowingly.

"Pretty much," Randy chuckled. "Though they're really good, so I imagine they'll get a decent group this evening, even if it's mostly theatre majors."

It was true. Normally audiences for student class performances tended to be from those departments, though Lily liked that there was some crossover and support between the theatre and music majors. They did share rehearsal spaces a lot of the time after all.

A slightly chill breeze made the leaves in the park rustle around them. It was already dark, being just after dinner, but Lily didn't mind. She was wearing her favorite purple knit sweater—one of her mother's creations with neat patterns corded into the sweater in varying faded shades—and matching lavender pants. The outfit was not only comfortable, but also warm.

Soon enough, they passed under the last of the old metal lampposts that lit the walkways through the park, and entered the open-air amphitheater. The stage at the bottom was already decked out in set pieces, and a backdrop at the farthest point, painted to look like an ethereal summer night, complete with fireflies. Somehow, they had even gotten them to twinkle. Lily suspected lighting, with small holes in the cloth.

"Shall we sit, my lady?" Randy smiled with easy gallantry as he draped a blanket he had brought for them to sit on across one of the concrete stairs that served for seating.

"Unless you prefer to stand," Lily teased as she sat down, and snuggled up to Randy's side as soon as he joined her. What better way to spend an evening than watching a romantic play with her sweetheart?

Randy seemed to be thinking the same. "Why stand, when we can cuddle?" he whispered in her ear.

Lily would have responded, but at that moment two of the actors came out on stage, took their places under the lights, and waited for the hush. As soon as the audience noticed them and quieted, they began.

Randy hadn't lied. They _were_ excellent, especially for students. Lily was happily captivated by the forlornly romantic tale of childhood friends and lovers, torn apart by war, told as a series of letters, where the two characters returned to a single summer, on a particular night in a field. In their letters they returned time and time again, to be together in that place that was theirs, even when, at the end, the girl found that the boy had been lost in action during combat far away. Then, she stood alone.

Years passed, symbolized by the artistic changing of scenery and subtle shifting of the movement of the girl. She aged, she stayed alone. She turned down lovers. Just when it seemed there was no hope for a happy ending, the boy returned, his letter saying that he had almost died, but would be returning to her. She should wait for him, in their field.  
It was during their final reunion scene that Lily realized both of the characters looked like they had in the first scene, when they had first parted, as young, and realized that they had been reunited in death.

"Tissue?"

"Thank you." Lily took the offered white square from Randy and dabbed at her eyes. "That was really moving."

"Yeah," Randy smiled, and she realized his eyes were glistening just a little too. "I noticed."

The audience—all thirty two of them— burst out in riotous applause. Lily could not imagine how they couldn't have passed their midterm with top marks for a performance like that. Slowly, people started to stand up, and the crowd began to disperse.

"Want to meet them?" Randy offered. "I ah… I think they're tired of me talking about you."

Lily laughed, though her face warmed with pleasure. "Sure. I want to tell them how much I enjoyed it."

"Great." Randy offered her his hand and together they walked down to the stage, where the actors were chatting with a few others who had stayed. No one had taken down the sets yet.

As they waited their turn to talk, Lily wandered up to take a closer look at the backdrop. Even up close, it seemed almost magical. The paint work on it was good, and the twinkling "fireflies" turned out to be a combination of lights through pin-point holes, and tiny sparkling bits of glitter at certain spots in the paint.

"You like it?" Randy asked.

"It's beautiful."

"Not as beautiful as you are."

"Oh stop," Lily chuckled, turning around-

-to find Randy down on one knee in front of her. He grinned at her look of surprise.

"What are you doing?"

He chuckled. "What does it look like I'm doing?" He reached into his pocket with one hand, as he reached with the other to catch her left. "I haven't known you as long as the couple in this play, but it's been a long time. I've been sweet on you since we were kids, and every day that we're together I feel like I'm the hero in some romantic epic, but only because I must be, to have a lady like you." He brought out the ring. "I'd like the adventure to go on forever. Lily, please say you'll marry me."

Suddenly all Lily could hear was her heart beating in her ears, and the night seemed even warmer. Her vision blurred—with tears, she realized, as she bent down and kissed him.

Taking her actions for the affirmative they were, Randy grabbed her up in his arms and stood, almost picking her up as they kissed passionately.

The hoots and hollers and riotous clapping made Lily break off the kiss to look around, blushing furiously as she realized they were being watched. Her feelings turned to surprise as she looked at who was there, and realized that this whole thing was planned. Her roommate Tara was there and her friends Penny and Viola. Randy's roommate and his best friends were there as well. All of their mutual friends…

Lily wasn't used to being surprised. Even Eamon, who had known her better than anyone, had rarely been able to pull of any kind of surprise where she hadn't found out ahead of time. "How did you set this up?" she asked as Randy set her down and slipped the ring onto her finger.

"A lot of very careful planning and trying not to sneak around while, well, sneaking around," Randy admitted, laughing as he hugged her tightly again. "I love you."

Lily beamed. "I love you."

A moment later, they were swarmed by all of their friends and well wishes, and Lily found herself fielding questions from when they would be getting married—which seemed awfully early to be asking the question—to just what kind of a wedding Lily had always envisioned.

Their friends, unsurprisingly, insisted on celebrating by taking them both out—despite it being after dinner—for drinks and dessert. By the time they got away from the crowd, after they finally managed to convince everyone that they really _did_ want a little time alone together, it was getting late.

Randy walked Lily back to her dorm, as he always did, though tonight the walk seemed to go by far too quickly, despite the fact they walked deliberately slower than usual. "I don't want tonight to end," Lily admitted. "You're amazing, you know that?"

"When you're happy, I'm happy," Randy pointed out. "Nothing makes my day better than seeing you smile."

"Even when I'm smiling and you're late to class and missed getting your morning coffee?"

"Darn, you figured out my plan," Randy teased as they paused outside the dorm. His hands rested lightly on her arms. "Does this mean if I'm running late in the morning, you won't bring me coffee?"

"Pretty sure if you're running late, we both will be," Lily pointed out, blushing as she considered the reality of being married, and moving in with Randy. He had always been a gentleman, and their make out sessions, while passionate, had never crossed any lines that made Lily uncomfortable. "I guess…we need to make plans."

"We do." Randy smiled. "First things first, I guess. When do you want to tell our parents?"

"Summer," Lily blurted out, for a moment unsure if she wasn't just still thinking of the play. Then, the other reasons followed.

"Why wait that long?" Randy asked, looking confused.

Lily smiled. "I want to see our parents' faces in person when we tell them."

"Fair enough." Randy kissed her again, before letting her go for the night. "Sleep well. I'll see you in the morning."

"Of course," Lily said. "First thing. Just don't forget the coffee."

Randy blinked. His deep, pleasant laugh filled the night air. "I see how this is going to work."

 **March 22** **nd** **, 1985**

Ian would have been happy if they had been filming this pool scene in the summer, when it was warmer, but at least it had turned out to be an unseasonably warm day in Central for filming. Otherwise, he was certain the entire crew would have rioted. In either case, they were filming their poolside scene on an indoor sound stage that was done up to look rather realistically like they were outdoor poolside at a beach resort in Aerugo.

In any case, with the bright lights warming the air, and the fact that Bartholomew Tanner, who was directing this film, had made sure the indoor pool they were using was heated enough to feel a little more comfortable, it would do. At least his character in this show seemed to like actual swim trunks, instead of the professional swimsuits that were more revealing than even Ian preferred most of the time. He could live with dark blue patterned swim trunks.

For this part of the film, he and his romantic interest were on what would prove to be a particularly steamy vacation.

As he arrived at the pool, he noticed that Tanner looked annoyed. "Something wrong, Sir?" He'd worked with the man long enough he felt comfortable asking him just about anything.

"One of the extras isn't coming in today," he said. "We need her. She's the one serving drinks in this scene."

"Can't one of the other girls do it?" Ian asked. There were plenty of girls on set in skimpy bikinis. Most of them were extras with non-speaking rolls though. Still, how hard could it be?

"She's got to fit the uniform costume we've got." Tanner insisted. "You know any girls with a 32 Double-D bust and a twenty-five in waist we can get on short notice?"

Ian wasn't sure if he should be insulted or flattered that Tanner actually seemed to be asking him that question seriously. He thought about the uniform he'd seen for the hotel employees for the scene: a shimmery silvery swimsuit with tie-on strings. Yes, it would have to be someone pretty specific to fit into the costume as it was. "Bonnie Walsh would fit it," he said almost as soon as he thought of her. He hadn't actually meant to speak aloud, but it was true.

Tanner blinked. Then he grinned and clapped Ian on the shoulder. "You're right!" He turned and glanced across the set. "Miss Walsh, get over here!"

Ian moved away, hoping that Bonnie wouldn't see him there, but it was too late. She saw him, and looked curious before she was distracted by Tanner.

Ian picked up a copy of the script, pretending to go over lines he already had perfectly memorized.

"You want me to _what?_ " he heard Bonnie exclaim over the murmur of dozens of voices. When he dared to look back, Tanner was nodding, looking pleased, while Bonnie stalked back to the dressing room. Tanner saw him looking, and gave him a thumbs up sign.

Ian had a feeling that hadn't gone over as well as Tanner thought it did, but there wasn't much he could do about it now. Besides, it was time to get to places. He eased himself down at the edge of the pool as his co-star, Angie Simpson, came over. It occurred to him that Angie could also have fit the costume, if she wasn't one of the stars in the cast. She was blonde, busty, and filled out the bright red bikini she was wearing as if it were a second skin.

"Ready to shoot?" Angie asked, batting her eyes as she settled, perfectly businesslike, down in front of him and leaned up against his lap. This was opening position for the scene.

There were moments Ian wondered what the directors and camera operators were thinking, but it always somehow looked natural when the films came out in theaters.

"Completely," Ian assured her, smiling as he put his arm around her waist. There was nothing awkward about it; it was just business: Dozens of scantily clad men and women, standing and sitting around, studying lines, getting into character; getting ready to film. Last minute hair, make-up, camera movements; yes, his life was weird.  
This particular shot being a distance shot didn't require him to do much other than hold her and pretend to be conversing with the couple next to them. As soon as it cut, it was time to get ready for the water fight scene.

Ian nearly swallowed his tongue when Bonnie came out of the dressing room. She would never have chosen something so revealing for herself, but -as he had expected- she was stunning in skimpy swimwear. The bikinis were made of a shimmery silver material with tie-on strings on the sides and back, and purposefully barely held in the bust of the woman wearing it.

"Oh! Ian!"

He looked at Angie, who he realized he was still clutching on his lap. She was giving him a dirty little smile.

"You really are a bad boy aren't you?" she chuckled, wiggling her hips before Ian realized what she meant. Fighting down a blush, he shrugged casually, as if it were of no concern. He didn't tell her his reaction had nothing to do with her. They had to act together for the rest of the shoot.

So he grinned. "That's what they tell me."

"Perfect!" Tanner smiled broadly. "All you've got to do Bonnie is come in on the mark where Ian pulls Angie out of the water and waves you over. Bring the tray of drinks, crouch down and set it down poolside, smile, and return."

"Got it," Bonnie replied curtly.

"Good. All right everyone, places! Take it from the end of the water fight."

Which was really more like water-flirt. They were in the shallow end of the pool, and the scene involved a playful splash fight that turned into a romantic moment between "Danny" and "Laura" that would take their passionate summer relationship to the next level.

They finished the water fight in only four takes, which was good as far as such things went. Ian gallantly lifted Angie out of the water, waved Bonnie over, took drinks for the two of them, and gazed lovingly into Angie's eyes as they both sipped their tropical red dyed water.

"Cut! Okay, that's a wrap. Nine in the morning tomorrow folks."

Ian breathed a sigh of relief as he set down his drink, hopped up, and grabbed a towel, which he rubbed vigorously over his hair before draping it over his shoulders. It was time to get back into some real clothes.

"Nice work today," Angie paused beside him, smiling as she took a towel for herself. "I love the intensity you can put into your eyes. If I didn't know better, I'd think you were actually desperately in love with me."

 _Oh, if only I thought you were kidding._ Angie was a good actor, Ian wouldn't deny that, but she thought a little too much of herself out of character for him to really like her.

"Thanks," he smiled, as if he didn't know she was fishing for compliments… or possibly a bed partner. Too bad she hadn't hit on him a few years ago. "I've been working on that, but you know, it's hard to tell if it's working sometimes. My uncle's dog isn't very responsive."

Angie looked lost. "Hrm?"

He used Angie's momentary confusion as a means of escape. Better to do that before she figured out he'd compared staring at her eyes to looking at Uncle Ethan's dog.

Ahead of him, he saw Bonnie walking quickly towards the trailers.

"Hey, wait up!" He lengthened his long strides, managed to catch up quickly. "That was good work to-"

Furious green eyes cut him off cold. "I can't believe you did that to me! I've never been so embarrassed in my life!"

That wasn't the reaction he had been expecting. "What do you mean? You did just fine. Tanner said you were great."

"I was on screen wearing _this travesty!"_ Bonnie gestured at the bikini.

"And you looked amazing!" Ian replied, trying very hard not to stare at her body. It was hard when she was pointing like that.

Bonnie snorted in disgust. "I look like some big-boobed bimbo! But then, that's how you like them, isn't it? You were all over Angie today."

Ian felt his face go hot. "She's playing my girlfriend! The character's _supposed_ to be all over her."

"Between takes?"

 _She was sitting on my lap. What did you want me to do, drop her?_ "What, are you my babysitter now?"

"I thought you were interested in me."

"Yeah well, you know what; I shouldn't have to act like we're together when you've made it abundantly clear that we're just friends. You don't get to be jealous and possessive." Ian forced his fists to unclench. Instead, he turned back towards his personal trailer. "If you won't commit, don't act like we're dating." He had to exercise all his will power not to turn around. Bonnie's silence was worse than if she had kept yelling at him.

* * *

It was turning out to be a pretty nice evening, Ted thought as he strolled through Central. He was meeting up with a few friends for dinner after work, but he'd gotten done a little early. He was passing the gates to the studio where his brother Ian filmed when he was almost run-over by someone.

"Oh, gosh, I'm sorry," the woman looked up and then her eyes widened as she recognized him.

Ted blinked, startled, it was Bonnie Walsh; Ian's friend-who-was-not-his-girlfriend. "Bonnie. What's… is something wrong?" he asked as he realized her eyes were tear stained.

"Your brother is an ass, that's what," she replied shortly as she pushed past him and kept going.

Ted turned to watch her, stunned. _Well, crap. What did you do this time, Ian?_

Ted checked his watch. He still had time. Changing direction, he made his way to his brother's apartment first. When he got to Ian's apartment he found the door unlocked when he knocked. He got a "come in" for his troubles. Inside, his brother was sulking on the couch.

"Rough day?" Ted asked.

Ian looked up, and blinked in surprise. "It was a pretty good day, actually. We got a lot of filming done. Why?"

He called that a good day? "Because I just had a run-in with a crying redhead in the street."

Ian's expression went from momentarily confused, to angry. "Oh, that." He shrugged. "I made a suggestion on the set and she didn't like it."

"What did you do?"

"All I did was suggest she fill in for one of our sick extras. It's not my fault she actually did it."

"Why would she be mad about that?" There were times Ted wished he understood the entertainment industry.

"You'll see it when it airs." Ian leaned back on his couch cushions.

"She sounded pretty hurt, Ian. Bonnie doesn't strike me as the over-sensitive type."

"You know what?" Ian stood up abruptly. "Let's go out, hit a club. I feel like being out tonight."

Ted opened his mouth to object, but thought better of it. His brother wasn't going to talk until he was ready, and if he was in one of his more manic moods, than it was best to follow along and just let him blow off steam. "Sure," he replied. "Sounds fun. I was meeting up with a few guys. You can join us." He didn't think Ian would do anything truly stupid, but he was too well known a face to be left wandering around town alone in places where he was likely to run into fans. _I'm totally going to bill him for using me as private security._

 **March 23** **rd** **, 1985**

Ian hoped Angie didn't get _too_ into filming their torrid love scene today. If she did, he might lose his breakfast on top of her.

He dropped into the make-up chair in wardrobe and only opened his eyes when a male voice said, "Good time last night?"

Ian's eyes sprang open and he found himself looking at Rafael, one of the male costume and make-up artists that worked for the studio. "Where's Bonnie?" he blurted out, ruder than he had meant it.

Thankfully, Rafael didn't take offense. "Bonnie called in sick this morning."

"Sick?"

"Yeah, she said she caught a head-cold. Sounded pretty stuffed up, too. So, you make due with me." He shrugged and smiled. "Not that you have much choice."

"Oh, I don't mind," Ian assured him. Rafael was perfectly capable. "Sorry about earlier. You surprised me."

"Good." The man got to work. "You look a little pale yourself. I hope whatever it is isn't going around."

"I'm not sick," Ian assured him. "I just had a late night. My brother and I were hanging out and I lost track of time." _Maybe a little hungover, but not sick._ It was the truth after all. He didn't make a habit of telling anyone the details of his personal life anyway, so Rafael didn't seem to find it odd that Ian didn't say more than that. Which was good, since Ian didn't really want to talk about the club night that quickly turned into a bar crawl since it made it a lot easier to avoid female fans if he kept moving and didn't stay at any one place for more than an hour, sometimes less. The last thing he needed was more bad press.

He closed his eyes and let Rafael work. Once he was done, it was time for wardrobe, though today's was even skimpier than the swim scenes, if that was possible.  
Ian arrived on set in the pair of almost-skin toned briefs he would be wearing for filming, with black silk boxers over them. Angie was already there, waiting in the filmy red lingerie "Laura" would soon have removed for their passionate love scene. Under it, Ian knew, she wore flesh-tone underwear and a strapless bra. Neither of them would actually _be_ naked. The rest would be worked with careful camera angles.

It occurred to Ian that it was probably a good thing Bonnie wasn't there on set today. She'd probably through a fit over him having his hands and lips all over Angie for most of the shoot.

Unfortunately, he was pretty sure Angie was going to enjoy it more than he was.


	4. Chapter 4

**April 1** **st** **, 1985**

Ian wasn't sure how much more of this he could take, he thought as he closed the door behind him and dropped onto the beat-up couch that was the primary seating in his on-set trailer. It was lunch break, but he wasn't feeling hungry.

It had been a month, and he still hadn't found a way to patch things up with Bonnie. He had apologized for making her uncomfortable. She had apologized for over-reacting. That had been it until the disaster with the bikini scene. Now, at work, she remained coolly professional. She never acted like she was snubbing him, but there was no more joking chatter in the make-up chair, or teasing as she adjusted his clothes during fittings. She hadn't invited him over, and she had politely declined every attempt on his part to get her to spend time with him outside of what was strictly necessary for their jobs.  
 _  
Rap. Rap. Rap._

Ian almost bolted for the trailer door at the sound of knocking, except he could tell that the person on the other side of the door couldn't be Bonnie. Her knocks were not that heavy. "Mr. Tanner," he nodded respectfully when the Producer/Director proved to be standing there. "Do you need something, Sir?"

"I wanted to talk with you," Tanner stepped up into the trailer with no further prologue, "About your performance."

Ian sighed. "I'm sorry. I know I wasn't at my best today."

"What?" Tanner looked honestly startled as he sat down in one of the few small chairs that were part of the sitting area. "What are you talking about? You were just fine."

"I'm confused," Ian admitted. "Then why are you here?"

"I meant off-screen." Tanner sighed. "The past month you've looked like someone ran over your grandmother, Ian. You don't smile. You don't joke. You almost don't talk to anyone. You're in here or you've got your nose in the script. Hell, you even leave food on the snack bar." There was serious concern in his eyes, Ian realized. "And I can't help noticing a very pronounced strain between you and Miss Walsh. I don't want to pry into your personal life, as little of one as you have, Ian. Do you want me to assign someone new to your wardrobe and make-up?"

"No!" Ian blurted without giving it any thought. As soon as the word was out of his mouth, though, he wondered if it wouldn't be for the best. Bonnie actively avoided him outside of wardrobe. Outside of work she had actually hung up on him twice, and hadn't been home any time he had gone by. He knew that because her car was gone.

All he could get out of Grandpa Silverman was that the models of all of the dresses in her new line had shown up on time, and looked excellent. When he asked about Bonnie herself, Grandpa told him that a man should direct his questions concerning a young woman to the lady herself.

Not much luck when he was clearly being avoided.

Grandpa had given him a sympathetic expression, but he had always been one to feel people should work out things for themselves. He wasn't a meddler. Normally, Ian had appreciated that. Right now, he almost wished Grandpa Silverman were more like Grandpa Ed.

"Ian?"

He had forgotten Tanner was sitting there, still looking at him.

He shook his head. "Sorry. I'm…"

"Having a rough time of it." Tanner nodded. "It happens to all of us. I'm just worried about you. Personally I mean. Professionally I know you'll give your everything. Don't worry about that." He sat, expectantly, and Ian had the feeling he was waiting in case Ian wanted to get anything off his chest.

But he didn't. Not to Tanner, however well-meaning he was.

"Don't reassign Bonnie, sir. Not on my account," Ian said finally. "It wouldn't be fair to her." She was a credit to her job, perhaps even more-so given it had to be difficult for her to see him every day.

"All right. If that's the way you feel." Tanner stood again. "I'll see you on set." He moved to the door. "But if you need some time off, let me know."

Tanner was in the doorway before Ian called out. "Actually, when we're done filming, I'd like to take a little time and go visit my family."

Tanner nodded. "I'm sure we can arrange that. We don't start filming on your next project for a couple of months."

"Sounds like a plan then." Ian just wished he felt a little more excited about it. At least he had his cousin Aeddan's birthday to look forward to later tonight.

* * *

Reichart had to admit it, the family had really outdone themselves this year. While the kids would have small birthdays with just family on their actual birthdays, the giant blow-out style party at his parents' place was a huge hit.

Dad and Grandpa Ed had put a large addition on the playground, which included a taller slide, uneven monkey bars, and a climbing wall that led up to a tower-style tree house. Given there were over fifty children running all over the place, shouting, laughing, devouring cake and ice cream, and playing the variety of games provided, Reichart was sure they were having fun.

They had started with the pony games, which had been a huge success, before moving on to the other games, pausing only for cake, snacks, and presents. Then they had let the kids run loose while most of the parents hung around and talked.

Reichart couldn't help but keep an eye on his brother. A large part of the motivation for this party plan had been so Urey could enjoy it, with less of a reminder of what he had lost, bringing Yurian into the world; so that maybe Urey could just appreciate the son he had and have a day where they could enjoy each other's company. Most days, Urey didn't even act like they were related; at least not any more than he was related to any of his nieces and nephews.

It made Reichart both sad and angry to watch his brother missing his son's life, refusing to really engage, but part of him understood. If anything ever happened to Deanna, he'd be devastated.

Unfortunately, it didn't seem to be working. Yes, Urey had come, but he clearly wasn't enjoying himself any more than any other one of Yurian's birthdays. It didn't matter that the healthy, active little boy was running, laughing, and having the time of his life. Urey didn't smile. In fact, the only thing his brother seemed to be enjoying at all was the food.

"—the most delightful little thing."

Reichart looked up as Deanna walked toward him, deep in conversation with Raina Summers, one of the now two kindergarten teachers at the Resembool school. The town had grown enough to have two or three classes of every grade. Raina was new, as people went in Resembool. She had moved to the town just before the start of the school year, and was Yurian's teacher. "Having a good time?" he smiled at Raina as Deanna moved past him to be sure the punch bowl was full.

"I am, thank you so much for inviting me," Raina smiled, pushing a strand of her straight dark-golden hair out of her soft blue-gray eyes and behind her ear. "I spend so much time working on lesson plans, I don't get out much."

"A real shame," Reichart replied, meaning it. Resembool was a great town.

"Is… Urey here?" Raina asked curiously. "I was hoping to get to meet him, since he's Yurian's father."

Of course Urey would never have introduced himself. Reichart tried not to groan. Deanna was the one who walked the kids to school every day, and picked them up afterwards, at least on days when they didn't walk themselves. The older ones could usually herd the littler ones without any trouble. "Sure." Reichart pointed at his brother. "He's right over there."

Raina glanced in the direction he gestured, and blinked. "That's your brother?"

"Yeah, that's him." Her expression was puzzling.

Raina smiled slowly. "You didn't tell me he was cute."

Reichart turned and took a long look at his younger brother. He felt bad to feel so surprised at her response. But then, Urey had looked a lot better, what seemed almost another lifetime ago. "If you think he' cute, you should talk to him."

"In front of all my little students?" Raina looked hesitant.

"You said you wanted to talk to him," Reichart chuckled, though at least part of his amusement was with the situation. Who would have expected her to find his brother attractive? "But I suppose talking about curriculum isn't the same as getting to know him personally."

"Definitely not," Raina agreed. "Though I should introduce myself."

"Yes, you should," Reichart agreed. "You know what," an idea sparked in his mind. "Wait a should meet up with him tonight."

"Tonight?"

He began to feel bad, realizing he might just be using Raina to try and forestall the inevitable, but despite the fact it wasn't Yurian's real birthday, he'd bet he knew where Urey was going to be this evening. "In town." He smiled, hoping it didn't sound too odd. "I'll arrange for him to meet up with you at the pub, if that's all right." That's where he knew Urey would go as soon as he was free to escape from his son's birthday. If he could keep his brother from drinking his misery, even for an evening, it would be a major accomplishment.

Apparently, Raina couldn't sense his ulterior motive. "That sounds like a much better place to strike up conversation. You're sure it's okay?"

"Trust me," Art replied. "Meeting up with you can only make his evening better."

* * *

Franz sat in a comfortable recliner as he watched his nephew, Aeddan, ripping into his birthday presents, surrounded by family, friends from school, and his soccer team. It was ironic, he thought, that the group of rambunctious children was quieter and more relaxing than his job. That, he supposed, was the secret of being President of the Amestrian Military that he had always known, yet had never experienced.

It had been all he could do to get over to Ethan and Lia's house that afternoon after work. He was grateful that it wasn't a requirement for the President to have armed escorts, or he would never have managed any privacy. It helped that general people on the street kept a respectful distance. Franz had never been one for celebrity. He'd leave that to people like Ian, whose livelihoods depended on it.

Not that he wasn't enjoying the job; at least some parts of it. The rest he had already known were coming., though it was strange, not doing his own job anymore, and having an entire staff that had worked with him for decades—in some cases—now answering directly to him. It had put a new layer of difference between them, and he wasn't sure how much he liked that. _Mustang and Breda always managed a pretty laid back office without losing efficiency on their subordinates' parts. Maybe I can convince them we can still have that kind of work rapport._ The first few months had been so hectic, he hadn't had a lot of time to think about it. Now that they were through his first set of evaluations as President, things had calmed down enough that he had noticed the distance between him and men he had used to consider colleagues, some of them friends.

"Your expression is far too serious for this party."

Franz looked up at Cal. "You'd say that if I were smiling."

"Maybe." Cal grinned and took a sip from his glass of iced tea. "We survived another year of evals and the paperwork is done and in. If that's not a cause for grins I don't know what is."

"You make a convincing argument." Franz drank from his lemonade. Cal had already been in charge of most of that work before Marcus Kane's retirement. Now that Cal had been promoted to head of the department that oversaw State Alchemists as a whole, he certainly had as much right to gripe as Franz did. "Just don't expect a raise."

"Oh I don't want it," Cal assured him with a smug grin as he dropped down at the end of the couch nearest Franz's chair. "The last raise I got came with way too much responsibility. Not that my wife is complaining," he added with a knowing smile. "She's been going on for weeks now about how it'll pay for both kids to get through college."

"That must have been one hell of a raise." As if he didn't know exactly how much Cal made. Alyse had always been good with money, which was probably why she actually handled most of the family finances in that house.

"More than enough to get by on anyway," Cal shrugged. "We've almost got the house paid off. Both cars are paid for. Other than trying to keep them in clothes and food, there's not a lot else to spend it on right now."

Franz nodded. He was in a similar position. The kids were grown and out of the house. Neither had chosen the college route. Their house, having once been Gracia's, was paid off. He made excellent money, and had little to spend it on except his grandchildren. He had been working towards enough for him and Sara to have a highly enjoyable retirement. Now, there didn't seem much point. "You should take Alyse on a long, romantic trip when you have the vacation saved up again," he suggested.

Cal gave him a long look, though he seemed to know exactly where Franz's line of thinking had gone. "I should," he agreed. "We've talked about it, actually, going somewhere together once the kids are both out of the house in a couple of years. Or at least while they're both away for a semester."

"Sounds quiet, like my place." Franz considered whether or not to tell Cal what had been on his mind lately. "I'm thinking of selling the house."

"Any particular reason?" Cal asked.

"Well, James has his own place now. It's just me. It's too big for one person," Franz replied. Too big; too empty; too many memories. "I'd be all right with an apartment to myself."

"You think the President of Amestris can get away with an apartment?"

"It's not like I invite people over to be entertained," Franz pointed out. He hadn't really had anyone over outside of family since Sara died.

"You could get a roommate," Cal suggested. "Or a girlfriend."

Franz managed not to choke on his lemonade. He had never told anyone about his almost-relationship with the widow down the street. Had Cal figured that out? "I'm not interested in anyone," he replied truthfully.

"Have you looked?"

"It's not really anyone's business but mine, is it?" Franz frowned. "Besides which, I don't really want to deal with dating _and_ being President of Amestris."

"Other men have done it."

"That doesn't mean I enjoy it when girls my daughter's age bat their eyes with me and hope I'll respond." It had only happened a couple of times, but Franz had made a point of pretending not to notice the interest of anyone young enough to be his child.

Cal shuddered. "Fair point."

"And just what are we plotting over here?" Tore asked as he joined them. "The conquest of Drachma? Busting criminals?"

"Mortgages."

"College tuition." The two men spoke nearly on top of each other.

"I've wandered into the boring adult conversation. Fabulous." Tore chuckled. "I suppose I should just be grateful Dare will get paid to get trained, instead of the other way around."

Franz was grateful for the change of topic as Cal and Tore started discussing summer and their kids' future plans. He really didn't want to admit to anyone that he had in fact considered, and discounted, dating. It was too complicated as the President, and while he did find himself missing some of the physical elements of a relationship, he wasn't willing to get into a relationship where he couldn't give a women as much of him as she would deserve.

The pile of kids had moved, he realized. While they were talking they had moved outside and were now playing an impromptu—and very uneven—game of soccer.  
He was glad they could enjoy their childhoods. A lot of people had given sweat and blood to make Amestris safe for families, again and again. Franz just wished Sara was here to see it.

* * *

Urey knew his family was just trying to be sensitive to his feelings, but that didn't mean he'd felt any better about being at Yurian's birthday party than he would have if they had held it in a few days, on the actual date of Cayla's death.

It didn't change the facts. Nor did it change the fact he had tomorrow off and didn't have to be anywhere; which meant he could sit here and drink his whiskey with minimal guilt.

"May I join you?" an unfamiliar female voice asked two shots into the bottle.

Urey looked up. The woman standing beside him was vaguely familiar, but it took him several seconds to place her. She had been at the party earlier. Deanna had pointed her out. She was one of the new schoolteachers. "Umm… sure. Would you… like a drink?"he offered. "Umm…"

"Sure," She surprised him with an easy smile as she reached for the bottle of whisky in front of him. The bartender brought her a glass. "Call me Raina."

"Do you- are teachers allowed to—"

She chuckled softly. "You must not talk to teachers much." She held up her glass, which was half ice. "What are we drinking to?"

"To?"

"No one wastes good whiskey on nothing."

He supposed she had a point. Not that he had any idea how to respond to her question. He supposed telling her that he was drinking to the memory of his dead wife would be fairly morbid. "I hadn't decided," he replied instead.

"Then maybe I can help," Raina suggested. "Since it's his birthday soon, what about your son, Yurian?"

"You know Yurian?"

"I'm his teacher," she replied, as if it should be obvious. "Miss Summers."

Of course, he had seen the forms. "I thought your name was different," he admitted, suddenly feeling stupid.

"Oh." Her eyes lit up with understanding. "My first name is Wisteria; Wisteria Raina. My father wanted to call me Rainsong, so I suppose I got lucky." She picked up her glass and held it up. "To Yurian, a delightful and engaging little boy who it is a true pleasure to teach."

Urey nodded, and drank, unsure how he felt about that statement. It occurred to him that Raina spent more time with his son than he did.

"This is good stuff," she smiled as she looked at her glass. "You have taste."

Urey shrugged. "Thanks," he said as he refilled his glass, and topped off hers before he took another sip.

"So I hear you're a talented alchemist."

He nearly spat his whiskey in her face. "Where did you hear that?"

"Oh, word gets around." She smiled kindly. Her smile touched her lovely eyes. "Though in this case Deanna told me."

Oh, that would make sense. "Well, I'm not an alchemist anymore," he informed her, wondering why Deanna would have chosen to tell her that. She knew he had given it up, except for the basic, functional stuff, when he gave up on his plan of moving to Central to work in alchemical pharmaceuticals. "I'm just a farm hand."

"It was my understanding that alchemists never really stop being alchemists," Raina replied. "Something about the mindset. But then, I don't know many alchemists." She took a slow sip.

"Who do you know?"

"Mostly your family," she admitted, setting her glass on the bar. "It's pretty hard to walk around Resembool without running into an Elric. Your grandfather comes to parent nights at the school sometimes."

Urey hadn't realized that, but he didn't say so. The fact that there was no judging look or anger in her eyes only made him feel guilty. He knew there were people in Resembool who thought he was a lousy parent. Most of the time he agreed with them. That was why he never argued with the decisions his parents made about his son, or Reichart and Deanna, since he spent so much time with his cousins. They were all better parents than he was.

Apparently he had been silent a moment too long, because a look of slight disappointment crossed Raina's face. "I'm sorry, maybe I'm talking too much."

"No!" Urey exclaimed. "Sorry. I just think too much sometimes." His stomach had knotted up. He couldn't take disappointing women.

"Better than the alternative." It seemed to appease her. Raina smiled again. "I like a guy who's a good conversationalist."

Even through the buzz, he couldn't miss the expression in her eyes. No, there was no way… except she was. She was flirting with him! Urey resisted the urge to gulp down the rest of his glass. "I'm a fan of conversation," he replied, despite the evidence to the contrary.

"Great! I don't get to spend much time talking to people outside of work, an d then it's all "how did you assess the crayon coloring pages?" and "please don't eat the goldfish.""  
Urey paused, mouth half-open before he realized he wasn't entirely sure how to respond. Then it occurred to him that she was, partially, joking. He chuckled. "The cows don't go in much for conversation."

"Glad to know I beat them out."

"I… that's not what I—"

Raina shook her head. "Sorry. I couldn't resist. I should probably swap over to coffee. I get really chatty after drinks. Excuse me, Reg!" she waved down that evening's bartender. "Could I get a coffee?"

"Sure," the man nodded. "How do you want it?"

"Black with sugar, no cream."

"You want anything?" Reg eyed Urey.

"The same," Urey decided with only a moment's thought. It only took a minute for Reg to return. He always kept coffee on in the back.

Raina smiled sideways at him. "So, what do you do when you're not entertaining the girls at the dairy?"

It took him a moment to realize she was talking about the cows. "I read a lot." He shrugged and put his cup to his lips.

"Have you read the new book Leon Heiselstein has out on the philosophies on education in ancient Creta?"

Urey almost burned himself. Of course he had read it! "You like Heiselstein?"


	5. Chapter 5

**April 10** **th** **, 1985**

There were times it was nice to be back in Resembool. For Ian, it was always a return to the past. Fame only meant so much out in the world. For most of Resembool, he was just a local boy made good. Though the town had grown, he usually didn't have to worry about being accosted by fans. He was more likely to get stuck listening to old Mrs. Farsten talk about the time he had volunteered to walk her dogs when he was seven and had nearly been pulled halfway across the county. At least, the way she told it.  
He just wished that coming home this time didn't feel like he was running away from his problems since that was exactly what he was doing. He didn't have to be back at work for a couple of months. He wanted to see his parents, and his brothers that didn't live in Central, and his swarm of nieces and nephews. He was looking forward to seeing his grandparents, and old haunts and friends.

That didn't stop the ache in his gut that kept nagging at him that even his friendship with Bonnie might be over.

Not that he said a word about it as Grandpa Ed met him at the train station, and they walked through town and out into the countryside, up to the Hill house. As much as Ian was looking forward to the chaos, he was kind of glad he was staying in one of his grandparents' many guest rooms. He had come to value his privacy.

"Where's Urey?" he asked as he rejoined his grandparents in the living area. It was mid-afternoon, and Granny was already starting on dinner. Judging by the pile of vegetables and cubed beef, Ian was betting on stew. He wasn't going to complain about that. He loved her stew!

Grandpa looked up from whatever he was scribbling in a notebook. "He doesn't get done at the barn until just before dinner. He'll be along later, unless you want to go over and say hi."

Farm town boy or no, Ian wasn't all that fond of the smell of cows. He preferred horses. He really preferred redheads on horses.

"Nah. I think I'll go down and see who's home," he said instead. Even if his parents were still out, Callie would be home, and he could always stroll next door. Callie had finished school, but had decided to stick around for a year and work while she decided what she really wanted to do. Deanna and the kids would be around. "Is it just us tonight?"

"You think I'm making this much food for four of us?" Granny looked up and grinned at him. "Your parents, Callie, and Yurian are coming to join us tonight. We'll have a big meal for everyone this weekend, when the adults get more time off."

"Sounds good to me." Ian chuckled. "I'll head out then, but I promise I won't be late. I'd hate to miss your amazing cooking, Granny."

"Glad someone appreciates me," she teased, returning the quick hug he gave her before he headed for the door.

"Hey, I appreciate you!" he heard Grandpa exclaiming as he closed the door behind him.

Ian smiled. His grandparents were always like that; teasing each other, quibbling. He'd known them long enough to know they weren't actually fighting most of the time. It was their weird, kind of cute, way of flirting.

His smile slipped a little as he walked down the hill towards the road. What he wouldn't give to have a relationship like theirs; romantic, and equal, and long-lasting. Now that he had someone he wanted to be with, it seemed unfair that it might not happen. Not that Ian particularly believed in fairness. Not when he worked in an industry where choices were made on often subjective criteria. It was all about being wanted… never about what you wanted for yourself.

Ian managed to brush off the worst of what could have been spectacular melancholy before he arrived at his childhood home; still on the same hill, still painted yellow, though it now sported far more garden –and playground—than it had, even in Ian's childhood. He could tell by the noise before he arrived that Deanna and the kids were outside enjoying the weather; there were boys and girls swarming all over the playground.

His mother, Deanna, and Callie were sitting on the porch drinking what looked like some kind of fruit tea. His mom liked those things. It was Callie who spotted him first, and the first to tackle Ian with a huge welcome home hug. "You're back!" she squealed.

"Hey, whoa!" Ian laughed as he gave his not-so-baby sister a bearhug, then set her down. "You are _not_ allowed to grow up and be hot. How am I supposed to protect you from Central?"

Callie's face flushed with pleasure. "I can protect myself thank you very much. I'd be more worried about you being torn to shreds by fanatic women."

"Fair enough." Ian turned and walked with her the rest of the way to the porch.

His mother hugged him next. "It's so good to see you," she smiled as she let him take a seat. "We were surprised to get your call. Your schedule is always so all over the place."

"I told Dad I have a break between filming," Ian shrugged, keeping it casual as his mother poured him an iced glass of what proved to be strawberry iced tea. "I couldn't imagine wasting it sitting around in Central."

"How could Central ever be boring?" Callie did not look convinced.

"Anyplace can get dull when you've lived there long enough," Ian pointed out. "It's not like everything is free in a big city either." He wondered how disappointed his fans would be if they knew just how rich he was _not._ He was quite happy to be making enough to live off of without needing to work other part-time gigs, and he was lucky in that respect. Though he had, at least, toyed with the idea of getting a nicer apartment at some point, and maybe a car.

"I guess so," Callie conceded. "I'd rather be bored there than there though. I think it would take longer."

"You'll get your chance," his mother chided gently. "You know if you want to move to the city, your Grandpa will be happy to have you work for him while you go to school."  
Ian could see Grandpa Silverman doing that. It wasn't like he was ever short of a need for employees these days. It wouldn't hurt her work in sales that his redheaded sister was cute. "It would be cool to have you in Central, sis." It wasn't like she would have tons of family to take care of her there, too. Or at least, brothers to kill any boys who got too close, with him, Coran, and Ted in the area.

The conversation for the rest of the afternoon was more of the same general chatter and catching up. As it got closer to dinner time, Ian walked with his mother, sister, and little Yurian up the hill back to his grandparents' place. His father, he was assured, would meet them there. Being mayor, getting off work was sometimes a slightly flexible timeframe…usually in the direction of late.

Urey was already home when they arrived, and looked as though he had just washed up, since his clothes were clean, his hair was damp, and he didn't smell like barn.  
Ian hesitated just a moment coming into the room. The last time he and Urey had really had a conversation had been at their cousin Minxia's wedding months ago. It had ended a little tense. Outside of brief 'hi, how's it goings' on the phone, they hadn't had a meaningful conversation. He wished he knew where they stood.  
Urey surprised him. "Hey, look who remembered the way home," Urey commented gruffly, though there was a hint of a smile in his eyes.

"As long as I follow my nose, I can't get lost," Ian took the quip in stride, deciding to go with the getting-along tone his brother was setting.

"It's hard to mistake Granny's cooking," Urey agreed.

Within a few minutes everyone was sitting in at the table. Full bowls of stew had just been served when Ian's father arrived, looking tired but smiling.  
Ian stood again for a moment for a back-breaking hug. "Long day?" he asked his father knowingly.

Aldon nodded as he sat down in front of his waiting bowl. "Long enough, but just the usual situations. We're looking at a plan for improving the roads in the heavy-traffic parts of town, and there's also a plan we're considering for expanding city water."

"Who knew Resembool had infrastructure," Grandpa Ed chuckled between bites.

"At least it's more civil than last year's argument over whether or not to let them expand the movie theater by tearing down that old barn that's been on Main Street for two-hundred years," Winry pointed out.

Cassie nodded. "I'm so glad they did. It was falling apart."

That caught Ian's attention. "They expanded the movie theater?"

Ed grinned. "Yep. It's got six screens now. You'll be glad to know they insist on always being one of the first theaters to get your movies."

That was nice to know. Ian grinned. "Well, it's nice to know someone appreciates my work."

The chatter continued through dinner, and Ian managed not to talk the whole time. He liked listening to his family. Their chatter was so real, so down to earth, and much friendlier than what he often heard spending his days on set. Even when you liked your costars, there was always an element of competition in the entertainment world. So Ian listened, and ate his way through three helpings of stew before his grandmother brought out dessert; a rich, creamy cheesecake.

"Mom, I have a question," Urey said as they started dessert. Ian couldn't help listening. "Sure." Cassie looked as surprised as Ian felt. "What is it?"

Urey spoke slowly, with quiet hesitation. "I'd… I'd like to walk Yurian to school tomorrow… if that's all right."

Ian managed not to drop his forkful of cheesecake.

"Oh. Well, of course," his mother replied, "That is, if Yurian wants to." She turned to Yurian. "Would you like that, if your Daddy walked you to school tomorrow?"

Yurian, who hadn't been paying the least attention to the adults' conversation, looked up from his plate and swallowed his mouthful of dessert. His expression lit up. "Yeah!" He looked at Urey. "Really?"

Urey smiled hesitantly. "Yeah. I thought… it might be fun."

Cassie smiled, letting the topic drop, which seemed to be what Urey wanted. Looking as if there was a little less of a weight on his shoulders, Urey dug into his dessert with more pleasure.

After dinner, Cassie took Yurian home to bed. Aldon and Callie stayed later to talk and Ian enjoyed listening to his sister talk about all the local gossip, and his father talk about all the local politics. They played a couple of games of cards before they finally left for the night.

When they left, Ian found Urey standing at the top of the stairs to the second floor, looking out one of the upstairs windows. "You okay, Rey?"

Urey nodded and wiped his eyes on the back his hand. "Yeah…yeah. I'm fine. I just… I was afraid he'd say no." He straightened up. "I should get to bed. Lots to do tomorrow."  
Ian decided not to ask Urey what had made him decide to walk his son to school. Belaboring anything always made Urey stubborn. Instead he clapped his hand on his brother's shoulder. "Have a good night. It's good to see you, man."

That got him a brief smile. "You too."

 **April 11** **th** **, 1985**

Yurian was waiting with an eager look on his face when Urey arrived on his parents' porch that morning. His son smiled, only looking a little shy for a moment as he took Urey's hand, and glanced behind him at Cassie, who remained in the doorway, smiling at them both. "Have a nice walk!" was all she said.

"We will." Urey smiled back at her, though it took a little effort, and then he turned and headed down the road.

Yurian held his hand with a surprisingly tight squeeze. Urey wasn't even sure what to say to him, but that seemed to be all right. For several minutes they walked along in companionable silence. Deanna's kids had left ahead of them, running down the road, and soon enough they were left in relative peace.

Listening to Raina talk about Yurian some the other night, Urey had realized that he really knew next to nothing about his son, even though he saw them as often as he saw the rest of the children in his family. Up until now, that hadn't really bothered him, but she spoke of him with so much joy, about his preciousness, intelligence, and his kindness to other children. His son's favorite snack at school was fresh fruit, and he loved to draw puppies. His favorite colors were yellow and purple, and he was left handed. Yurian could already read as well or better than most of the first graders.

Somehow he had known none of this. Yurian was his by blood, but he had so done so little in raising him that they might as well be strangers. He was more of an estranged uncle than a father.

But for the first time in his life, he wanted to be more than that. If only he could figure out how.

Thankfully, Yurian broke the silence first. "Look at that!" he pointed excitedly and Urey looked up to see deer standing at the top of the nearest hill. "That's a baby deer," Yurian said. "You can tell by the spots."

Early as it was in the season, he was right. "Very good," Urey smiled. "Do you know a lot about deer?"

Yurian began to babble everything he had learned in school about deer. As long as Urey nodded and asked the occasional question, his son was thrilled to talk his ears off about deer, and then the little wildflowers starting to bloom along the roads, and even how rainbows were made when it rained. When Urey asked how he knew something, if he hadn't learned it from Cassie or Deanna it was "teacher told me!"

It also occurred to Urey as they walked, that aside from some visual similarities to Cayla, that was where Yurian's resemblance to his mother ended. While Cayla had been quiet and soft spoken, Yurian was chatty. While he had her expression, he was hearty and healthy and full of energy. He wasn't sick, or frail, or any of the things Urey had feared would carry on from Cayla to a child. He was also very quick and intelligent. Okay, so he was only five, but that didn't stop him from being ahead of his peers in so many ways.  
Much the way Urey himself had been, only his son didn't look like a bookworm. If he had gotten one thing from Cayla that Urey found himself grateful for, it was that he seemed to have gotten a little more of his mother's build. He was not unlike Urey in general build, but slimmer, and lean. In that, he looked more like an Elric.

That was how the rest of the walk went, with Urey asking the occasionally leading or follow-up question, and Yurian babbling at him as if they walked this way to school every day. Urey wasn't sure what he had expected, but the lack of awkward distance on Yurian's part floored him.

Finally they arrived at the school. Urey paused, unsure what he was supposed to do from there, but Yurian seemed to know. He gave Urey's hand a squeeze, said "bye, Daddy!" and ran over to the swings, where some other little children were sitting and standing around. Apparently the bell hadn't rung yet.

"Good morning, Mr. Elric."

Urey looked away from Yurian to find Raina standing there, dressed for work. Even with her hair up in a bun, straight skirt and blouse, she was cute. Possibly even more attractive than he remembered from the other night. "Good morning, Miss Summers," he said, remembering to use her last name in front of the students. "I was… just on my way to work."

"So I see." She smiled at him for a moment, before turning around and going over to the cluster of smaller children and speaking to them. A moment later they were all walking inside with a level of order Urey couldn't imagine how she got them to keep.

It was only when he realized he was the last one standing near the school yard that he turned and proceeded to walk to the dairy.

 **April 12** **th** **, 1985**

"You've done it again, Alyse," Cal complimented his wife as he squeezed the hand of the arm that was looped through his. "In fact, I think you've outdone yourself."

"Thank you," Alyse smiled up at him. "I would say something humble, but I have to admit, I think I've managed to impress myself for once."

State dinners were always formal occasions, and visits from foreign dignitaries were even more of a reason to show off, and show respect for, their guests. This one was no different, particularly as there was someone new at the head of Aerugo. The newly elected leader of the Aerugean Senate, Ferro Paullon, was making his first international visit. Cal was trying very hard not to think of the dark-haired good looking thirty year old as _that young pup._ He was by far the youngest leader Cal had met, with the exception of some members the Imperial family in Xing.

Alyse had really done her homework, decking the grand hall and dining room out in the colors of Aerugo, and while she had not been foolish enough to attempt approximations of Aerugean cuisine, she had considered their taste preferences. As it was currently a national holiday of solidarity in Aerugo, she did have the traditional desserts, with the recipes and ingredients approved by Elena, and cooked by the best little old Aerugean grandmothers that Elena could hunt down in Central.  
Cal had enjoyed them at dinner, and the look on Paullon's face when he was presented with them at dinner told him that his wife's ability to make anything happen had made the day again.

"I'm still not sure it was smart to bring this joker." Cal resisted the urge to ruffle his teenage son's hair. Alyse had spent nearly twenty minutes making Charlie's curly mop into something semi-respectable.

Charlie, who looked entirely out of character in a suit and tie, grinned impishly at his father. "What? You don't trust me to keep out of trouble for one evening? I made it through dinner, didn't I?"

"You were fine," Alyse assured him.

Cal had to admit, his fifteen-year-old had been on his best behavior tonight. His manners at dinner had been exactly what anyone who didn't know him would have expected from the son of three-star General and Alyse, who was known for being the height of good taste and manners in Amestris. He was maturing as he aged. Or maybe it had to do with his date, since Charlie had been allowed to invite his girlfriend, Shelby. "Lose your girl already?"

"She's in the restroom," Charlie replied. "I wasn't going to follow her." He shrugged. "Besides, why worry about me? Shouldn't you be worried about guys trying to seduce my sister?"

Cal twitched at the idea of his daughter and seduction in the same sentence. His eyes darted almost involuntarily across the room, to where Gloria was chatting easily. She looked stunning in eveningwear. Her long gown was dark blue and shimmering. Somehow, unruly curls on him and Charlie looked like carefully coiffed style on his daughter.  
He felt a touch of relief as he saw who she was talking to; Dare Closson, his girlfriend Lorraine, and Mireia Mustang.

Elena and Maes, along with Riza and Franz, were in deep conversation with Paullon, who seemed to be enjoying himself. After a moment of watching, Paullon offered Riza a hand as the live musicians struck up the next dance. Riza smiled, and accepted graciously.

It was then that Cal noticed it. "He's not married."

Alyse shook her head. "No. According to my research, he doesn't even have a girlfriend right now in Aerugo, though he was in a relationship that ended over a year before he ran for office." She looked up at him. "You're not worried about him making a move on Gloria?"

"No," Cal replied, perhaps a little too quickly. "Okay… not seriously, but he's not any older than her than I am than you." It was a very uncomfortable though when he looked between the two. Perhaps he should have been more aware of just how it looked when he had asked Alyse out all those years ago. _No wonder Alphonse and Sara both wanted to castrate me._

"Dance with me."

Cal looked down at his petite wife, with her recently restyled hair, and her stunning green evening gown. He smiled back and stepped towards the dance floor. "As my lady wishes."

* * *

While he still preferred a good back yard barbecue, Tore Closson had gotten to the point where he occasional enjoyed formal occasions, particularly since they were an excuse to spend time with Charisa when she was all dressed up. Brandon and Cami had opted to stay home with a sitter, which meant Tore didn't have to worry about keeping an eye on anyone except his wife.

Which didn't mean he didn't enjoy watching Dare and Lorraine together. He was proud of his son for finishing out his last year of high school, despite being eighteen already and old enough to enlist. Though he had given the military his papers. As soon as he graduated, he would begin basic training.

He was proud of the man his son had grown into already. Part of him felt twinges of nostalgia though, missing when Dare was just a boy. Their first years had been hard, and he had almost lost him, but everything had worked out.

Thanks in a large part to Charisa. Tore gave her a little squeeze, which got him an amused, curious look. "You have that look," she commented knowingly.

Tore chuckled. "Yeah, well, I'm allowed. I much prefer politics like this, than in the trenches."

"I like having you here." Charisa kissed his cheek. "We should be sure to pay our respects before the night is over."

"Do we have to?" Tore asked. "I'm really not that important."

"Of course you are," Charisa shook her head. "I've heard that Senate Minister Paullon is very grateful to Amestris for our assistance in rebuilding over the years. A lot of that work was done by State Alchemists, and apparently he's a big fan of State Alchemists because of it."

Of course… "I guess I can't disappoint a _fan._ "

"I didn't think you would. Just don't let it go to your head," Charisa warned him. "Oh, look, he's just talking with President Heimler now. This is a good time."

Tore nodded. He didn't really mind being introduced to visiting dignitaries. It was far more interesting now than when he had come along to these things with a boy, following Edward and Winry and pretending he felt like behaving. _I do not deserve my well-behaved children._

Together, they made their way over, arriving just as the two Presidents chuckled, apparently at some shared joke.

Franz saw them coming first. "Oh, Minister Paullon, I'd like to introduce you to someone I think you will enjoy meeting."

"Is that so?" Paullon turned around and spotted them. Tore didn't bristle as Paullon looked at Charisa appreciatively first, before looking at Tore.

Franz was smiling. "This is the Shock Alchemist, Colonel Tore Closson, and his wife, Charisa Breda Closson."

Paullon's eyebrows had gone up a little at the introduction of Tore. They nearly climbed through the roof at Charisa's name.

Tore grinned. _Yeah, that's right. She's mine…and she's amazing._ He offered his hand. "Minister Paullon, it's an honor."

The man recovered quickly. "No. The honor—the pleasure—is mine," he took Tore's hand and shook it firmly. Then he reached for Charisa's hand, which he shook briefly, but only after he had bowed over it. "I have heard many tales of you both, and complimentary ones, I assure you."

Charisa chuckled pleasantly. "While my husband is known for getting himself into stories, usually rather spectacularly, I am curious what you would have heard of me, Minister."

That was a very good question.

"Besides your beauty?" Paullon smiled. "Those who pay attention to international circles have heard much about your political acumen. Your work on our behalf during the disaster is well known."

Tore knew the Breda family had been thought well of in Aerugo due to their part in the rescue and recovery operations when the earthquake had caused both a volcanic eruption, and a tsunami that had swamped southern Aerugo with severe coastal flooding. While the Assembly was technically the ruling body of Amestris, it was impossible not to think of the President of the Military as having equal authority, and being a far more visible figure.

Watching his wife chat conversationally with Paullon, Tore began to wonder if maybe it was time they took a little family vacation to Aerugo… after checking the weather forecast.

 **April 13** **th** **, 1985**

"Are you going to ever let anyone else use the bathroom?" Ian asked through the closed door. He couldn't imagine what his brother needed to do in the middle of the afternoon that was taking so long. "I just need to floss." He was planning to hang out with some old friends, but he didn't want to be late meeting up with them.

The door opened, and Urey gave him an irritated look before turning back to the mirror, in which he was staring intently as he finishing running a comb through his hair.  
Ian watched his brother give the open checked shirt over his t-shirt a tug and smooth it into place. Urey looked fine –certainly the best he had in a while in Ian's memory- but he looked disgruntled. "Anything I can do?" Ian offered.

"Not unless you know a way to drop ten pounds in four hours."

"Only ten?" Ian couldn't help the skeptical quip.

"The ten I'm going to admit to," Urey replied stubbornly.

Ten… forty. Ian supposed it didn't make a difference at the moment. He was more curious why his brother suddenly cared again. He had a suspicion. "You got a date?"

The tops of Urey's ears gave him away as they turned slightly pink. "No," he replied, "Just a chat over a cup of coffee."

"With a woman."

"With my son's kindergarten teacher," Urey clarified.

Ian hadn't ever seen the woman, though Art and Deanna had been talking about her the other day. "She must be a knock-out." Ian grinned, letting it turn into just a hint of a smug leer. "You're wearing cologne."

That earned him a glare for a moment, before Urey sighed, shrugged, and stopped bristling as he realized Ian was purposefully egging him on. "Raina's nice to talk to. I've got to go." He turned and moved past him towards the door.

Ian watched his brother vanish around the corner. Then he turned back to the mirror, finally opening the drawer that contained the dental floss. He was definitely going to have to ask Art and Deanna more about Miss Raina the schoolteacher.

* * *

"Hey, Proteus, nice work today," Felix Tringham said as he tossed Ted a towel.

Ted caught it easily and wiped the sweat from his face as he dropped down on the bench in the HQ locker room and took a swig from the cup of water he had just gotten from the cooler. "Thanks. Not too bad yourself," he grinned in response. "That new move almost had me."

"I think, if I can get the angle right, I'll try using it on Deluge next time." Felix finished wiping the sweat from his face.

"It might work on her," Ted agreed, setting down his drink and stretching. The sound of several joints popping was accompanied by release in each of several areas. "Man, is there anyone around here who doesn't sound old by twenty-five?"

Felix snickered. "Comes with the territory. Just wait 'til you've broken a few bones. Not that it matters much, unless you care what girls think when something cracks while you're in bed."

Ted managed not to blush as he pulled supplies out of his locker for a quick shower. "Never really thought about it," he admitted honestly. It wasn't as if Felix didn't know Ted's dating history, if it could be called that. "Is it really that big a deal?"

"Like I said, depends on if you care," Felix shrugged. "My wife thinks it's cute. Why, you got a hot date tonight?"

From anyone else, Ted would have blown off the question, but Felix was a friend, and he felt he was in far too short a supply of those lately. "Maybe," he replied. "I am meeting up with a girl tonight, but we're just going to see a flick, catch dinner, the usual."

Felix smiled, looking pleasantly surprised. Ted tried not to feel annoyed. "Well, good for you," said Felix. "Do I know her?"

"I don't think so," Ted replied. "Her name's Paula and she works over in Assemblyman Emerson's office. We ran into each other in the cafeteria the other day. She was over here delivering paperwork to someone in the upper brass. We just happened to end up sitting at the same table." That was really all there was too it. They had hit it off, and she had been amenable to continuing the conversation outside of work hours. "I figure, there's no harm in having a good time. It's not like every girl is looking for something serious." At least, he hoped not.

"Not always," Felix agreed. "There's certainly nothing wrong with showing a girl a good time and just enjoying the company. In fact, I recommend it. Gives you a much better idea of what you're looking for when you do start looking for a woman you'd like to spend the rest of your life with."

"Nice to know I'm not crazy." Ted turned and headed for the shower. Given his record on that so far, Ted would take all the experience and advice he could get.

* * *

Urey didn't mind meeting Raina elsewhere than the bar. He had a feeling she hadn't shown up _entirely_ coincidentally the night after the birthday party. The next morning, after he had sobered up completely, he was sure he had been set-up. Yet he couldn't find it in him to be more than mildly disgruntled. Of course Reichart would have tried to find a way to make him feel better. While moving the party had not eased the pain of Cayla's death, and its upcoming anniversary, Raina's timely arrival that evening had distracted him from his planned evening of intoxication. For the first time in a long time, he hadn't minded conversing with someone socially for more than a few minutes or what was necessary to get through work.

She was intelligent, funny, and gentle, but vibrantly conversational and not at all shy as far as he could tell. Raina had made it fairly clear—he thought—that she found him attractive. Other than wondering if perhaps she had lousy eyesight and just didn't wear glasses, Urey was a little flattered. He had gotten used to pitying looks from women who had known Cayla, or being mostly ignored. That had been fine with him, but now, he felt different.

Which was why he was now standing in front of the flower shop, across from the small park at the edge of town, waiting for Raina and wishing he'd had something that fit a little better to wear. Of course, he hadn't bought anything much new in the way of clothing in five years, outside of replacing necessities. Most of the clothes he would have worn _going out_ had been bought when he was with Cayla. For several years he had just avoided them, and it was only through the grace of fortune—and a little prodigious alchemy—that the outfit he had fit well enough that it was acceptable in public.

 _It's just a conversation and coffee,_ Urey reminded himself, trying very hard not to think of their meeting as a date. When he did, thoughts of Cayla crept into his mind and crushing guilt threatened to overwhelm him. _Just coffee with my son's teacher._ Surely Cayla would have been all right with something like that. She would have wanted him to take care of their son. _Where was that reason five years ago?_ His mind asked.

Urey managed to shake it off as Raina came around the corner. He was beginning to wonder if she owned an outfit that _wasn't_ cute, or if maybe he just hadn't paid attention to a woman in so long he had forgotten how to look at one. Today's outfit consisted of a soft blue knit-dress, belted at the waist in brown leather, worn with similarly blue tights and sensible brown flats for walking. Her hair was pulled back in a tail, instead of in the bun she wore at the school.

"I hope you weren't waiting long," Raina said as she approached.

"Not at all," Urey assured her. "I've only been here a couple of minutes."

"Great. Let's go."

Together they walked the couple of blocks to the café Raina had suggested. Resembool had grown over the years. It surprised Urey to realize just how much of that had been in the last five while he hadn't been paying attention. Downtown was no longer a single four-block strip, such as it had been in his grandfather's day. It hadn't been much bigger than that when Urey was small. Now Main Street was ten blocks long, and stores extended around the block on each of those. In some places they were starting to crawl further back, and the houses had been built further out to accommodate. It had gone from tiny backwater to bustling town. It might not be a city, but that was okay with Urey.  
There were now four little coffee and teashops to choose from in Resembool. The one they were in today was one Urey had never frequented. It was a clean, cozy little place with light blue walls, and mostly white trim and furniture. The tablecloths were blue-and-white checked. Pictures on the walls showed anything from landscapes of the countryside to playful kittens.

This time of the day there weren't many people. It was between lunch and dinner on a weekend.

"So, what do you like?" Raina asked as they stopped in front of the little counter.

Urey looked up at the menu. It was mostly beverages; variants on coffee, tea, and hot chocolate, though they also had flavored sodas, dessert pastries, and a couple of savory pastry options. Pictures made it all look delicious. Despite having eaten lunch, his gut rumbled in anticipation. "What do you recommend?" he asked, smiling. "It's hard to choose."

Raina chuckled. "It's all good, but I'm particularly fond of the blueberry scones."

After a short deliberation, Urey went with her recommendation of the scone, which did look amazing, and a coffee with cream and caramel. Raina also got a scone, and a cup of sweet, creamy Xing spiced tea. Then they chose a small table in a cozy corner and sat down. He wasn't sure how this would go, but Raina proved not to be one to wait for an awkward moment. She started the conversation asking him what he did at the dairy, and then followed up with how her week had been at the school. Which followed into the book she was reading, and before long they were discussing their favorite authors.

Urey was still surprised to discover they liked to read a lot of the same people. "How did a schoolteacher get interested in anthropology?" he finally asked.

"I could ask the same of a dairy worker," Raina pointed out, "Except that I know the answer. My father taught history at a school in South City until he retired. He also sponsored several clubs."

"Did he coach a team?" Urey asked curiously. A lot of teachers did double-duty in the schools, he knew that.

Raina chuckled. "Strategy Games team, Academic Challenge team, and he was a co-sponsor for the Cooking Club." She took a sip of her tea. "Daddy is not at all athletic."

That description brought to Urey's mind more of an image of the late-General Breda. Trying to reconcile that to the lovely woman in front of him made his head hurt. Of course, General Breda had a beautiful daughter, but he knew that Charisa had been adopted.

"So if you were in South City, what brought you here?" he asked.

"The job," she replied. "When I graduated and finished my teacher training I was looking all over Amestris for work. I wanted to go somewhere new, and interesting."

"Resembool is interesting?"

"I wanted to try living somewhere that wasn't as big," Raina continued. "Where I could get to really know my students and their families. That's harder in a big city."

"So you like it here."

"I do." She smiled at him, and Urey got a funny feeling again that it wasn't just the town she meant. "I've gotten to meet some great people, and it's a nice little town."

"You should have seen it before the population boom," Urey looked down at his scone, which he was startled to find already gone. "It was a lot smaller when I was a kid, and Grandpa and Granny have stories about what was here when they were young."

Raina set down her teacup. "I'd like to hear more about the history of Resembool," she said. "See more the countryside. I haven't gotten to explore as much as I wanted. Teaching takes up a lot of time. Maybe you could show me around."

Urey tried to keep his emotions in check as a mixed batch twisted inside him. "I… I'd like that," he said. "But I should tell you I—I'm not sure where this is going." _Well that was smooth._

It was Raina who blushed first. "I like you, Urey," she admitted easily. "I should probably tell you something too. I know about your wife. I asked Reichart and Deanna about it at the beginning of the school year, since his parents weren't there. Naturally, I wanted to know about his home life."

"Of course." It made sense when he thought about it. "I'm surprised you don't hate me, actually."

"Hate you?" Her eyebrows dropped in a puzzled expression.

"I haven't exactly been much of a father to my son."

Her expression turned to more of an 'oh.' At least, Urey thought, she was easy to read. "As a teacher, I think that's an issue between the two of you."

"And as a person?" he prompted.

"It's heartbreaking, but I can understand why it's hard for you. If Yurian were being abused or neglected, I would feel very differently, but your family is incredible, and your brother and Deanna speak very highly of you." She paused. "I just wish you could see Yurian as he is. He's such a darling boy."

Urey couldn't help smiling at that. "I'm starting to."


	6. Chapter 6

**April 14** **th** **, 1985**

Ed was grateful for one of the first warm mornings of spring. It was still cool, but not the chill that had plagued his morning workouts all winter. Several days Ed had actually wimped out and kept his exercise regimen indoors, choosing to work out in his small home gym rather than go for his preferred runs. There were just some things auto-mail ports would never adjust to, and cold and damp were two of them.

A sunny Sunday morning, just after dawn, where the weather felt like spring was perfect for getting outside and enjoying stretching his legs. He had just about finished his warm up stretches when he heard the front door open and footsteps on the porch.

Turning, Ed saw Urey coming down the steps. "Up early even for the cows aren't you?" Ed teased, though Urey was definitely not dressed for work.

Urey shrugged. "If you don't mind, I thought I'd join you this morning."

Ed was pretty sure his eyebrows were lost somewhere in his hair. "I don't mind at all," he replied, deciding it was wiser to say nothing about the fact that Urey hadn't worked out with him in years. Not since before Cayla died, when she had still been with them, but all of Urey's time had been given to her, as it should have been. "I'm doing five miles this morning, try and keep up."

For a moment, Urey looked like he regretted his decision. Then he shrugged and started stretching. "Sure, but if I pass out, you get to carry me home."

"Nope." Ed disagreed, chuckling. "I'll just leave you in the street. You probably won't get eaten by wolves."

* * *

Breakfast made. Lunches made. Two kids out the door to school. Trisha was almost relieved to settle back in the reclining easy-chair in her living room. "Now, it's your turn," she told Sara, as the hungry baby tucked in to her own breakfast, suckling away at her mother's breast.

She wasn't sure how five weeks could fly by so fast, and still seem like forever. Trisha had been given permission to go back to work six weeks after delivery, and now that Sara was almost that old, she found herself doubting how much she wanted to go back. Not that she didn't love her job, and not forever, but— "Roy, what if I didn't go back to work next week?"

Her husband looked up from his breakfast and the morning newspaper. "What?"

"I don't mean forever." How to explain it?

"Are you feeling all right?" he asked, immediately concerned. He stood up and came into the living room.

"It's not something wrong," Trisha assured him. "I just… I don't feel ready." She looked down at baby Sara. "I don't want _someone else_ to watch her all day. I don't want to miss what's going on here, with the kids." While the older two were in school a good part of the day, she hadn't been bored to tears, as she had expected to be. Quiet time with Sara was highly enjoyable. The third time through, she didn't feel unprepared or unsure about so many things that had concerned her as a new parent. "She's our last, and I guess…"

"You don't want to miss out?" Roy asked, a gentle smile coming to his face. "It's okay, Trish, I get it. My Mom was the same way with Mireia, remember? She'd already established a career, and she took time off. I'm pretty sure if you ask for a little extended leave, you'll get it. Besides, if they want you to be working with the teaching program, like they've been talking about, you're going to need to be up to sparring with those kids they've got in training. You're not cleared for that yet."

Which was true. Trisha might be able to drive again, and go to work if she wanted and sit at her desk, she had months of exercise before she would be combat ready. Most of the basics she could do right here at home. "So you would be okay with that."

"I'm a little jealous actually," Roy chuckled. "If I thought we could both do it, I'd be thrilled. If you want to wait a few more weeks, I'm fine with it. I can't imagine they'll say no. What are they going to do, argue with your father?"

He had a point, much as Trisha didn't want to think she could get extra leave just because her father had taken the position of President of the Military. She didn't want it to look like she was getting any favors for it. "All right. I'll put in my extended leave request."

"I'll make sure the paperwork gets delivered," Roy promised. He leaned in and kissed her gently. "Now I've got to run, or I'll be late."

Trisha nodded. It didn't take long for Roy to wolf down his last few bites of breakfast and head out. When he was gone, the house was quiet.

Years ago, if anyone had told Trisha she would want to stay home with her baby instead of running back to work as soon as she had the chance, she would have said they were crazy. Even with their first two, she had never had qualms about leaving them in the capable care of one or another of their extended family's grandparents or at-home mothers. Yet right now, those options weren't really as available as they had been. Roy's sisters were grown with lives of their own. Her father had his career. Even Roy's grandmother, Riza, wasn't at home as much. She had plenty of things she did to keep busy, and Trisha just wasn't ready to put her baby in a daycare center. There were options if she looked hard enough, but part of her _wanted_ to be home, at least a little longer, and relish the moments of her daughter's infancy.

Trisha wondered if her own mother would have understood. Sara Heimler had been a great Mom. Trisha loved her mother, but she had always been very focused on her career and her work as an alchemist. Still, she thought she would have understood. There was room in life for everything, if you kept your priorities in order. "I wish you could have met her, baby," she cooed softly. Little Sara was slowing down, and her eyes were drooping drowsily. "Your Grandma would have loved you."

 **April 16** **th** **, 1985**

"I'm going to miss you," Ren said as she hugged her brother tightly goodbye at the train station.

"And I will miss you," Mao smiled as he squeezed her back just as tightly.

Ren let go of him reluctantly and let Will shake his hand as she hugged Jiu. "You're welcome to visit again any time."

Jiu chuckled. "I think our next visit will be shorter, but I anticipate it just the same. Thank you for hosting us this year."

"It was a pleasure," Will assured them.

Ren stepped back as the train whistle blew, announcing the train would be pulling out in a few minutes. It was hard to believe that her brother and his wife had lived with them for a full year already. The time had gone far too quickly for her. Now, they were going back to Xing. They had been fully in touch with the family, and Tao was well established as being capable of leading the country without his father's assistance. Which meant, that Mao and Jiu could return home without much concern that the country would keep looking to them instead of their new Emperor. In Xing, Emperor's rarely lived long enough, or choose, to retire. Mao was a rare case and unusual exception.

Ren felt that a lot of their family was that way. She loved them for it.

Kamika hugged her aunt and uncle last. Soon, Ren knew, her youngest would be leaving the house as well. College was just a little over a year away, and their house would be empty, and so quiet. At least until children came home for holidays.

"We'll come visit you," Ren promised her brother. "Hopefully under much better circumstances than our last visit!"

"I certainly hope so," Mao laughed as he put his arm around his wife and picked his suitcase up in the other hand. Their trunks were already stowed aboard. "I will call when we get home."

"Good. Travel safely."

Then her brother and his wife were gone into the crowd, and on the train. Ren, Will, and Kamika stood, watching until it pulled out of the station.

"The house is going to be so quiet," Kamika commented as they walked back to the car.

Will smiled. "You say that like it's a bad thing."

"I liked having Uncle Mao and Aunt Jiu here," she replied. "It's okay when Mich comes home too."

"You could always go to college in Xing, like Michio is," Ren pointed out. The school had reopened, and her son had insisted on not missing a single course of his schooling. "Then you could see family all the time." Not like she didn't see her extended family in Central on a regular basis, but Ren knew what her daughter really wanted was a change of pace, someplace new to explore. They all did at one time or another. That was part of why she had come to Amestris for her own last two years of college.

"I'm thinking about it," Kamika admitted, "But there are a couple of places I'd like to apply. Pylos has some great programs, and so does ECU."

"Not planning to stay home?" Will asked, though he didn't sound serious.

"Sorry, Daddy," Kamika smiled. "I know you're the best teacher in the world, but I can learn from you for free anytime I come to visit. If you haven't already taught me everything you know."

"Oh, I haven't," Will smiled, "But you do have a point."

"Let's eat out tonight," Ren suggested as they reached the car. "What's everyone in the mood for?"

"Aerugean!"

"Cretan!"

Ren shook her head. "How about we split that down the middle and go to that Islander place that just opened downtown?" Their food was from the islands off the southern part of Creta, which was right near the Aerugean border. It tended towards a lot of seafood, grilled vegetables, and zesty spices.

"Oh, yes!" Kamika exclaimed. "I've been wanted to eat there." She eyed them, hopefully for a moment. "Can I drive?"

Ren looked at Will, who shrugged and handed her the keys. "Sure," he replied. "But I'm riding shotgun."

"Yes, Daddy." Kamika took the keys and got into the driver's seat.

Ren got in the back, grateful that there wouldn't be too much traffic in that part of town on a weekday evening. Her baby may be almost grown, but that didn't mean Ren was used to the fact her daughter was driving.

 **April 19** **th** **, 1985**

Bonnie loved it when she could just get lost in her work. For once, she had an entire afternoon to devote to making final alterations for the costumes that would be needed the next week for a costumed-ball episode of the weekly drama _Passion in Camdine Park_. The wide selection of men's and women's fashion from different historical periods in Amestris, Creta, Aerugo, and even Xing had been a project she had been delighted to get assigned months before. It was the big season finale, and they really wanted to boost the ratings by going all out. It was the end of the third season, and they would be re-introducing a character who was a lost love of the male lead's… right as he was going to ask his current lover to marry him. It would be a dramatic cliffhanger of epic proportions.

It was not at all the kind of thing Bonnie enjoyed watching. The costumes, however, were going to be gorgeous.

"Excuse me… Barbara?"

Bonnie twitched, but put a smile on her face before she turned around to face the actress who had just come into the costume shop. "Bonnie," she corrected simply. The woman _knew_ her name. "Can I help you, Angie?"

"Miss Simpson," Angie replied with almost identical inflection to Bonnie's earlier correction. "And yes, I wanted to see my costume for tomorrow's big scene." She was—unfortunately, in Bonnie's opinion—playing the woman being introduced in the show, who would be throwing seasons' of romantic tension and hope on the part of the audience into utter chaos.

"Of course," Bonnie replied accommodatingly. She turned and brought the gown down from the rack, hanging it on an empty rack where Angie could examine it from all angles. It was one of the more complex outfits, with many-layered flounced skirts, corseting in the bodice, and angled, layered sleeves.

As Angie looked the dress over, Bonnie turned back to the costume she was adding some final beading to.

"Why do you insist on hiding in here?"

"Excuse me?" Bonnie turned and looked over her shoulder.

"Oh please," Angie chuckled. "Don't pretend. I saw you on set the other day, when you subbed in for Maria. You know you could make it in modeling, or on the screen, and yet you wear frumpy clothes and hide away in the costume trailer." She turned the dress on its hanger. "Though I do have to say, your designs do flatter me."

Somehow, none of that sounded like a compliment. "I'm not hiding," Bonnie insisted, trying not to sound like she was blustering. "Design is my passion. It's what I studied for, and what I enjoy. I only did the scene because Tanner asked me to fill in."

"Don't you mean because Ian Elric asked?" Angie's eyes gleamed with wicked pleasure. "You can't tell me you haven't noticed him looking at you."

 _If only you knew._ Bonnie shrugged. She was not about to discuss Ian with Angie. If she didn't know they were anything more than colleagues, she wasn't going to tell her.

"Does he?" she asked casually. "I thought he looked at all women that way."

"Only the pretty ones," Angie replied. "Though I suppose you have a point. It might look that way to anyone who doesn't know him well."

"And do you know him well?" Bonnie couldn't help asking, just to hear what the woman's response would be.

Angie's chuckle was just a little too friendly. "It's hard not to know someone you work with all day, particularly on a film like that one. You learn almost as much about a man from filming a romantic role with him as you do actually dating them."

An interesting proposition. "Fascinating," Bonnie replied, managing to sound sincere. "And, you said he noticed me?"

"Don't get your hopes up," Angie cautioned. "I just thought you should be aware. So many girls want Ian, but he's not one to be easily had."

"The press doesn't seem to think so."

"I just mean that he's pickier than he appears," Angie replied. "Not that it will do him much good."

Bonnie didn't like that tone. There was something… proprietary… in it. "Why is that?" She went back to pinning.

"You really don't know?" Angie asked, sounding surprised. "Surely you saw him on set. He couldn't keep his hands of me, even when we weren't filming."

"How do you know he wasn't acting?"

"A bit jealous are we?" Angie asked, her tone making it clear that she expected it, and that Bonnie _should_ be. "Well, not that I blame you. He's got an amazing body. I could run my hands over those abdominals all day." She was eyeing the seam on a sleeve when Bonnie briefly glanced back at her. "When you've been in the business long enough, you can tell when someone's acting., and Ian's a particularly easy read. I'm still a little surprised he didn't ask me out to dinner after our love scene."

Bonnie didn't want to know. She hadn't come to work that day. She hadn't lied about having a head-cold, but she hadn't felt at all guilty missing watching Ian and Angie squirm around on a bed pretending to have sex. "Only a little?"

"He was a little under the weather that day. Not enough to affect performance of course, but he seemed tired compared to the day before. I'm sure he it's of no real consequence. When he gets back from his little vacation, we will be going out."

She sounded so sure of that. Bonnie refrained from turning and stabbing her with a pin. "Is the dress to your satisfaction?" She asked instead as she turned back to Angie.

"It will do," Angie replied as she stepped back and gave it one last look. "So, back to work with you. Can't spend all day gabbing can we?" She turned, but paused, shooting Bonnie a look that would slice chestnuts. "Just remember what I said. I don't want Ian distracted, so stay out of the way."

There was no diplomatic response. Bonnie stood there, stunned, until she heard the door close. "Bitch," she spat into the empty room. Part of her wanted to smack the woman, even though she had no right. Even furious with Ian, Bonnie didn't want that man-hunter to have him. Not that she thought Ian would ever date a girl like Angie. He'd said as much, and Bonnie didn't think he was lying—

-But she had turned him down, and now they were hardly on speaking terms… and it _was_ her fault. Ian could, plausibly, decide to go out with someone like Angie. She was beautiful, and he'd already _had_ his hands all over her. The question was... what was she going to _do_ about it?

Bonnie rubbed her eyes before getting back to work. It wouldn't do to leave water spots on the silk.


	7. Chapter 7

**April 27** **th** **, 1985**

He hadn't died yet, but Urey had to admit, keeping up with his grandfather was a lot harder than it used to be. So, on days when he couldn't run with grandpa because of early mornings at the dairy, Urey tried to make a point of taking long walks and jogs in the afternoon to build his stamina back up. He was aware he probably looked ridiculous, puffing up the country lanes in ill-fitting black sweats, but it was better than doing nothing now that he'd decided he wanted to try and get back into better shape. Not that he was in _lousy_ shape. Working at a dairy wasn't exactly a slouch kind of job, but he'd certainly been trimmer.

Still, he wasn't expecting to run into Raina in the middle of the day, out in the middle of the country on a dirt road he liked to take mostly because it was remote enough almost no one used it.

"Urey!" She waved as she caught up to him and slowed to a walk. "I wasn't expecting to see you out here," she smiled, face flushed from exhilaration, a lovely healthy pink above her lavender track suit. "I didn't know you liked running."

"I don't," Urey admitted, before he realized it sounded silly.

That got a laugh out of her. "Well, I can't blame you there. I-ah- had noticed you looked like you were working out. Now I know where you've been vanishing to."

She had noticed? Urey tried not to look embarrassed, but he figured his face was flushed enough from running she wouldn't have noticed anything anyway. "I prefer privacy," he admitted.

"I do too, though I don't mind company from time to time." Raina commented. "You know I don't mind right?"

Urey looked up from the road in front of him to look at her. "Mind what?"

"That you aren't shaped like a model."

"I'm working out," Urey replied, feeling a bit flustered. What did she mean?

"I _know_ that. I'm just saying, it's okay."

"I'm not doing it just for you."

"I didn't say you were," she chuckled softly. "Just that it doesn't change what I think of you. Actually, I think it's great that you're doing it, just don't think I think less of you for having to."

Was she really saying what he thought she was? This was not a conversation Urey had ever had with a woman. "Well there's a new viewpoint from a girl."

"Not that I'm telling you to give up and stuff your face," she chided. "But I know what it's like. Losing weight can be a bear."

Urey looked in surprise at her. Okay, so maybe Raina wasn't as slim as Cayla had been, but his wife had been frail. Raina had some very nice curves, but he wouldn't call her heavy; just a normal… healthy woman. "You _do_?"

At that, she laughed brightly. "That may be the best compliment I've gotten in years." She nodded. "When I was little, I was the chubby kid, and when I got a little older, I hated it, but I found out the hard way it's really hard for me to lose weight. Most of my family has it tough, especially on my father's side."

"Well you don't look like it."

Raina blushed, and it was clearly not running related. "Thanks. I worked really hard through high school and college. Since then I've done my best not to put it back on, because I never want to have to go through that again," she said, making a face. "Still, I've learned to enjoy running, when I have someplace nice to run through."

Urey understood that. "So… you don't mind big guys?"

"I like cuddling," she admitted, her cheeks going rosy. "Though I'm certainly _not_ going to complain about healthy living. It just means I shouldn't be cooking you my mother's favorite recipes, since most of them involve frying in butter," she added when he pouted.

"I like a woman who can cook," Urey replied without thinking.

"And I like a man who appreciates good cooking," Raina replied. "It's a must-have in my boyfriends."

"I…ah…" So much for smooth.

Raina's face flushed deeper. "I'm sorry…. Did I push too much? I—"

"No." Urey stopped moving, but reached out and caught her hand, making her stop walking. Raina turned and looked up at him. Thousands of words welled up inside Urey that he wanted to say; telling her that after six years he was actually ready to move on… because he'd met her, that he felt alive again for the first time in a long time, because of her. That suddenly the world had meaning, his reasons for existing made sense again… but he didn't need to ramble on about his painful past. She knew all that. "No," he smiled. "What you said was just right."

 **May 4** **th** **, 1985**

From his parents' porch, Ian had a clear view of Raina and Urey as they walked hand-in-hand out of sight down the road, this evening with Yurian skipping ahead of them. The three of them were having dinner. Even as he felt grateful that his brother had finally found someone who stirred his interest in life again, he couldn't help but feel a twinge of jealousy.

He turned and made his way down and around the house towards his father's workshop, where he raided the small refrigerator in which he could always count on there being at least one or two cold beers. He knew it took his father months to go through a small supply. Grabbing one, he went out behind the workshop and leaned against the wall, staring out over the fields and streams to the mountains beyond. The sun was starting to go down, and the sky was alive with colors, even as the shadows lengthened over the countryside.

Oh how he had wanted to show Bonnie this view someday. Ian popped the lid and took a long, slow swig.

"And I thought drinking out behind the workshop was supposed to be my thing."

Ian turned his head and shrugged at his father. "It's a good place to think."

"That it is." Aldon leaned up against the back of the building, sipping from a glass of iced tea. "So, what's had you moping about the whole time you've been home?"

"I haven't been that bad."

"Not for anyone else, but usually you're an unending source of energy. You've been preoccupied," Aldon pointed out.

"And you think you know why?"

His father nodded. "I know a heart-sick expression when I see it. Things aren't going well with your friend Bonnie, am I right?"

Ian took another sip of his beer. Of course his father had noticed. He wasn't stupid. " _Friend_ is too optimistic a word. We... aren't on speaking terms."

Aldon's brows creased with concern. "What happened?"

"We just haven't been getting along," Ian replied, aware that it sounded evasive. "Almost every time we talk it turns into an argument. I just don't get her!" he exclaimed, letting his frustration out. "She acts like a jealous girlfriend, but she won't let me get closer to her than general friendship. At least we had that for a while. Now she's not even speaking to me."

"Did she do something to make you mad?"

"Not particularly, unless you count turning everything into a fight."

"What did you do to make her mad?"

"Why do you assume I did something?" Ian stared at his father.

Aldon just raised an eyebrow.

Ian grumbled. "It's like everything I _am,_ everything I _do_ , is wrong to her. She doesn't like the roles I'm playing. She avoids me when I'm honest about my feelings."

"So, maybe she really isn't into you," Aldon suggested.

"No!" Ian objected loudly. "I- I can't accept that." He looked down at the bottle in his hand. Bonnie would have been mad at him for that too, and it was just one beer. But she had her reasons, even if she did have no give on some things. He knew about her father. "I'd do anything to be with her."

"Even give up your career?"

Stunned, Ian stopped mid-objection. He wanted to say _of course,_ but would he? It was his livelihood, his passion. "She'd never ask me to do that."

"That doesn't answer my question."

"I can't answer," Ian admitted reluctantly. "And I can't shake the feeling she likes me, but she's afraid. She's been burned, badly, twice, that I know of, but she's never told me much about either of them. I've tried to be patient, but she's driving me crazy! I'm not either of those guys!"

His father didn't respond immediately. Instead, he looked out at the setting sun, and drank his tea. "You know, it sounds to me like you haven't done much to prove you love her."

"How can I?" Ian argued, turning his frown from the ground to his father. "If I even bring up my feelings, or romance, we end up fighting. How am I supposed to show how I feel when she won't let me?"

"Maybe you're both doing it wrong."

Well that was a useful answer. "And just what am I supposed to be doing, _love expert_?" "It's not all about _you,_ it's about _her_ … it's about _both of you,_ " his father replied seriously. "You have to show you're serious in the ways she needs from you, and she needs to do the same. I can't think of a lot of women who want to watch their significant other feeling up other women. How would you feel if the roles were reversed, and she was doing steamy naked scenes with some bigshot like Gill Hartman?"

"I wouldn't like it," Ian admitted. Hartman was about a decade older than he was, and could pretty much take any role he wanted. He _never_ lacked for offers. "But those are my bread-and-butter right now. Popular or not, longevity in this business isn't a sure thing. I'm not at a point in my career where I can turn down a lot of well-paying roles. If I do, people will start taking them elsewhere."

"Branch out," Aldon suggested. "Audition for other roles. There are tons of roles you could play that don't involve making movies your mother won't watch."

"Mom doesn't watch all my movies?" Ian felt like he'd taken a punch.

"She says she saw enough of your backside when you were in diapers."

Well, he should have figured there were _some_ of his movies his mother wouldn't have watched. Actually, that was probably a good thing. "And you?"

"I'm your old man. I've seen everything you've done, but I don't tend to go in for much of that in film." He grinned suddenly. "Your mother is way cuter than any of those actresses."

Ian shook his head. "I do audition for other movies, but I just haven't been cast in them often."

"So keep trying." Aldon looked back out at the countryside behind the house. "If Bonnie matters to you that much, than even if it's just "for work" you're not going to prove you're committed to any relationship. What about other women?"

His father meant had he been seeing other women. "I haven't dated anyone lately," he replied. "I gave that up. I gave up going to the after parties. I just don't know how much more I have to give up before it's enough." The last came out bitterly.

"No wonder she doesn't want to go out with you."

Ian's grip tightened on the bottle. If it had been a can it would have been crushed. "Are you siding with her?"

"Well, you sound awfully selfish. Are those things so important to you that it bothers you that much? Do they matter more than Bonnie, or her happiness? Than her reassurance that you aren't going to move on to someone else, or turn into one of those celebrities who turns into a drunk, abusive jerk?"

"I'm not even close to being one of those guys!" How could his father even say that? "And she knows that," he added stubbornly.

"Ian, you're not dealing with an idealist." Aldon shook his head, not rising to Ian's anger, "Or a child. From what you've told _me_ the few times we've talked, you're not her first relationship, and other men hurt her, men she thought she could trust her heart to. Even if she knows part of you, it's going to take a lot more time and caring for her to get past those kinds of experiences. If you can't be selfless enough to not feel put upon to take care of a heart like that, and if she can't get manage to see that you're a good guy, than you need to accept that you're not a good match and move on. But-" he put up a hand, forestalling the enraged shout that Ian felt coming up out of him, "If you really love her, than you need to stop feeling like you've been inconvenienced, or that it's somehow unfair. It's not fair... to either of you. It's not fair that you're dealing with the remains of other men's actions, but just as it's not your fault, that's not entirely Bonnie's fault either, is it? She was willing to be friends with you. In fact, from what you've told me, she's been a very good friend to you. If she's jealous, than she probably does care about you quite a lot. So if you want her, grow a pair and figure out how to make it work."

It was a lot to take in, but Ian found himself startled out of reverie by his father's last words. "I can't believe you just told me to grow a pair."

"I can't believe you needed me to tell you." Aldon's smile reappeared, this time a little more reassuring. "I'm not going to tell you what you _have_ to do. That's not my job anymore, but only you can decide what your priorities really are." He laid a hand on Ian's shoulder. "Have you tried calling her?"

"Repeatedly." Ian looked down at the ground. "She never answers and she hasn't called me back." He had left two messages on her answering machine. They were useful in their line of work. Ian had bought one himself so he wouldn't have to worry about missing important audition calls.

"Keep trying." Aldon removed his hand as he turned back towards the house. "Your mother said to tell you dinner will be ready in half an hour."

"Thanks." Ian watched his father leave, then looked at the bottle in his hand. He had made a lot of very good points, even if they weren't what Ian wanted to hear. If Bonnie was reacting out of fear, then maybe he _didn't_ know everything he should. He couldn't control that, but he could control himself. He could _choose_ who he wanted to be, who the real Ian was.

Then, he just had to get Bonnie to talk to him.

 **May 8** **th** **, 1985**

Ethan had eagerly agreed to meet Lily and Randy at the train station when they arrived back from East City for the summer. He had tried not to seem too excited, but he was ready to have his baby girl back for a while. Eamon would be home soon as well, but as he was coming from farther away, he wouldn't be arriving for another couple of weeks.  
Lily had been happy and excited on the phone, and Ethan was glad she had gotten through her first year of college with a positive experience.

So he and Lia, who didn't have to teach since she had just finished grading finals, drove over to the train station to meet them.

"Now remember," Lia said as they stood on the platform, "You have to be nice to Randy."

"I've always been nice to Randy," Ethan objected. "I'm letting him date my daughter, aren't I? I've never threatened him with bodily harm."

"That's not the same as being nice," Lia scolded gently.

"I'm teasing, love." Ethan slipped his arm around her shoulders. "Of course I'll be nice to him. He hasn't given me a reason to hate him yet."

"As long as you understand that what matters is Lily's happiness and her decision." Lia relented though, leaning into his shoulder just a bit.

Ethan meant it about not hating the boy. He and Lily had dated for a large portion of high school, and Randy had never given Ethan a reason not to trust him. He and Lily had never been late coming home from a date, and he had abided by every rule regarding Lily that Ethan and Lia had set. As far as he could tell, the couple had never had a major fight about anything. They were very in sync with each other.

Finally, the train pulled into the station.

After what seemed an eternity of scanning the crowd for familiar faces, Ethan heard a delighted squeal followed moments later by his daughter appearing out of the crowd and hurtling first at her mother, whom she enveloped in an enthusiastic hug that Lia returned. Then Lily turned to her father and did the same.

Ethan enfolded his daughter in his arms, and hugged her tightly. "Welcome home, Lily."

"Thanks, Daddy," she smiled up at him. "It's good to be home. We had a long trip.

There was that we. Ethan looked up and saw Randy standing next to the luggage, looking amused. Ethan smiled. "I'm sure. Train seats aren't known for being comfortable." Ethan remembered many train trips in cheap seats, snuggled up against Lia, as they used each other as mutual pillows.

Randy shrugged a little uncomfortably, as if he knew what Ethan was thinking. "That they aren't, sir," he agreed.

"But we have to tell you the best part," Lily smiled, looking flushed with happiness as she stepped back a little, so she could hold up her hand. Suddenly in Ian's view was a ring that sparkled with gold and tiny jewels of white and amethyst. "We're engaged!"

Ethan was sure his mind was playing tricks on him. Surely she hadn't said… but Lia was beaming, and hugging her daughter again, and now hugging Randy, while Ethan's brain felt like it had momentarily turned to fog. "You're… engaged." Now Lily was looking at him expectantly, hopefully, bright eyed and happy. Ethan shook himself mentally, and smiled. "Congratulations honey." He hugged his daughter again, and then shook Randy's hand. Of the two of them, only Randy looked at all worried. _You should be, kid. You should be._

By the time Ethan felt like his head was on straight again, they had somehow managed to all get into the car, and he had driven them back to the house. He wanted to boot Randy out at his parents, but Lia had invited him to dinner.

Aeddan, who was home from school by then, was far more excited about his sister's announcement than Ethan was, and babbled excitedly, asking all sorts of questions—mostly about college—of both Lily and Randy as the two college kids pitched in, helping Lia make dinner.

Ethan was still reeling. His baby girl was engaged? They had only finished one year of college. He tried to keep himself from panicking, but was it was difficult. "So, when were you thinking of having the wedding?" he asked as they were all finally sitting down to the table, expecting that it would probably be a couple of years. There was no reason to freak out.

"Oh, June," Lily responded.

"Of next year?"

"No, this June."

Ethan almost choked on his glass of milk. "Isn't that a little short notice for planning?"

"Well, we've given it a lot of thought," Lily explained. "We don't want a really big ceremony, just immediate family and a few close friends and relatives. Eamon will be home by then. Alyse said she'd be happy to organize it so—"

"Wait, Alyse knows?" His cousin knew, and she hadn't said anything?

"Well we couldn't very well start planning this late, could we?" Lily asked, though for the first time she seemed to notice he wasn't completely thrilled with the idea. "I know it's fast, Daddy, but we really don't need a lot of time to get everything ready, and it means saving a lot of money for school if we're not paying for two dorms for the next three years. They have some apartments on campus for married students that cost the same as a dorm room. We knew we wanted to get married, so it seemed sensible to just go ahead and do it."

Ethan wanted to argue, but he couldn't come up with anything coherent that was also reasonable. Lia didn't seem upset. In fact, she seemed as genuinely excited as everyone else. Finally, Ethan gave in to the inevitable and nodded. "So, June it is! Just let me know what you want, Lily, and it's covered."

"Thank you, Daddy." That earned him another hug-around-the-neck and a kiss on the cheek.

Later, after Ian and Lily had run Randy home to his parents' place, Ethan took a long, hot shower. As he got ready for bed, he was surprised by Lia coming up behind him and wrapping her arms around him. "Thank you," she said into his back.

"For what?" he asked as he turned so he could see her instead.

"For not freaking out earlier." She smiled up at him. "You made Lily very happy."

"You know I would never do anything to hurt her on purpose," he said, hugging his wife. "I still feel like it's rushing things, but they're not kids anymore, and it's not really my choice, is it? I can be part of this, and pay for the wedding she's always dreamed of, or I can be the guy who ruins everything. I'm really not inclined to be the latter."

"How very sensible of you." Lia kissed him.

Ethan smiled around her lips. "Does sensible get rewarded?"

"I think something can be arranged."


	8. Chapter 8

**June 5** **th** **, 1985**

Edward tried not to be nosy when it came to family, but he knew he was terrible at it. The older he got, the more he couldn't stand to just sit by and let people live their lives when he could say something. So he didn't even really bother to be subtle when he came downstairs and found Ian—not Urey—sitting on the couch reading a book.

"Just what are you reading?" he asked curiously as he leaned on the edge of the couch.

"I'm not entirely sure," Ian replied, sounding mildly disgruntled. "Urey left it lying around. Apparently Raina recommended it and he keeps talking about how amazing it is."

"What's it about?"

"Something called _social anthropology?_ " Ian shrugged. "So far as I can tell it's a history book that goes into a lot more about the culture and customs. It's interesting enough I guess, since it's about ancient Creta, but who reads this stuff for fun?"

Ed grinned. "Well, I do. So does your brother, and the lovely Miss Raina apparently."

Ian frowned slightly. "I guess so."

"You have a problem with that?" Ed asked. "Or is the problem the source of the book recommendation?" Which seemed odd, given how much happier Urey was the past few weeks.

"Sort of," Ian admitted, putting the book down. "I don't know Grandpa. I should just be happy for Urey. He's been in a funk for years, and we've argued a dozen times about him needing to get out and live again, but I feel like it's moving too fast. I mean, he was in love with Cayla, and he felt hard and fast, and he mourned her for years. Doesn't it seem strange that he's suddenly happy in another relationship?"

"I suppose it could be," Ed acknowledged, "If that's how you look at it. You're an actor. Think about this from a character perspective. It's been _six years._ Whether he realized it or not, he's moved past the worst of grieving, he was just stuck. It's his nature to fall quickly when he recognizes a kindred spirit." It wasn't like Urey had gone falling in love with dozens of women after all. "Besides, don't you think Raina Summers is sensible enough to not rush into anything?"

He could see the wheels turning in Ian's head. "I suppose. I know neither one of them would do anything to hurt Yurian." He shrugged. "Maybe I'm just jealous that Urey can

get a girl—twice!—and I can't."

Ed gave Ian's shoulder a sympathetic pat. "Maybe it's the curse of fame. You'll find someone."

"How can you be sure?" Ian asked.

Ed chuckled. "If there was a woman in the world willing to marry _me_ , than there is definitely someone out there for you."

The comment had the desired effect. Ian chuckled, however briefly. "Well, if I'm lucky, _someone_ will be that crazy."

"You'll find out when you get home." Ed knew full well who the someone Ian wanted was; he just wished he knew a way to help make that happen. He couldn't do anything about the girl. However, there was a definite change in Ian since his arrival. Aldon had mentioned talking to him, but Ed hadn't pressed for details. Some things should remain private between fathers and sons. Ian was leaving to head back to Central in the morning, so Ed suspected it wouldn't take him too long to find out where things stood with Bonnie. He, Winry, and some of the family would be following up not too many days after for Lily's wedding. "You going to finish the book?"

Ian looked down at it. "Nah. At least, not tonight. It's a little in-depth for me. I think I'd need to read a refresher on the basics before I could really appreciate it."

"You should, you know," Ed nodded. "There are some heroes in ancient Cretan culture who would make fantastic film heroes."

 **June 7** **th** **, 1985**

Alphonse tried manfully not to tear up as he watched Gloria give the valedictorian speech for her graduating high school class. He failed. His granddaughter looked so mature, intelligent, and capable up there in her cap and gown, speaking of the future.

"Need this?" Elicia whispered, handing him a handkerchief from his left.

"Yes, thank you." Al surreptitiously dabbed at the corners of his eyes. Thankfully the crowd couldn't have cared less today about who was in the audience. The focus was on the students sitting in rows at the very front, and the few student officers and the principal standing up on the stage.

On his right shoulder, Alyse was being far less self-conscious about being emotional about her daughter's graduation. "Her speech was wonderful," she said softly as Gloria stepped down. "I think it was even better than mine."

"Well she _is_ going into journalism," Cal whispered on Alyse's other side. "I'd hope she can write!" His tone was just as proud.

Glancing down the family row, Al noticed that even Charlie seemed to be reasonably attentive to what was going on at the front. Will, Ren, and Kamika were in seats directly behind them, so he couldn't see them.

The music started to play, and one by one the students marched across the stage. As each student did, extra ruffles of applause would emit from different sections of the crowd, telling where their families were. The occasional shout or whistle from the group of kids at the front would be shushed with a glance from a teacher, reminded students that would come later; this was the decorum part of the ceremony.

Not that it kept Al from wanting to shout as he clapped his hands until they hurt when they called "Gloria Fischer," and she stepped across the stage with her usual confident, happy smile.

The graduation party –which had quickly turned out to be for Gloria and her two best friends— was back at Al's house. Alyse, Elicia, and Gracia had put every effort into making it fantastic, and for a few hours, Al's house was as riotous as it had been when he had his kids home. He was quite happy to grill dozens of sausages, hamburgers, and even a few steaks—for the adults. Then he grilled kabobs stuffed with vegetables, and then fish, and shrimp in the Cretan fashion. Anything Gloria and her friends had suggested seemed to be on the menu.

"Don't you ever get tired of this?" Cal asked as he sauntered up, drinking out of a bottle of ginger beer. With so many of the kids at the party, all the drinks were soft drinks.

"Of course not," Al smiled at his son-in-law. "Why, are you?"

Cal looked around. "No," he admitted. "In fact, I'm going to miss it."

"You've still got one more to graduate."

"Yeah, but Charlie's friends are even rowdier." Cal chuckled. "We may want to take out extra home insurance before throwing _his_ graduation party."

Al smiled, flipping the burgers in front of him. "I'm sure it won't be anything we can't handle. "Speaking of which, are your plans finalized?" As soon as Lily's wedding was done, Cal and Alyse were scheduled to go on a romantic three-week vacation down to Aerugo. Gloria and Charlie would be splitting their time between Will and Ren's house, and Al's.

Cal nodded, and his grin widened. "Got the train tickets, the hotels booked, concert tickets during our stop-over in Havah. I've booked reservations at the finest restaurants in Buéaire. We've got the cutest little cottage when we get down south with a fabulous view of the ocean." He paused to take a sip of his drink. "It's a lovely cliff-top location, with a trail down to the beach."

Al smiled. "Good thinking." While no one was anticipate a repeat of the earth-shattering disasters that had wrought havoc on Aerugo, it was better to be safe than sorry. "I would like my daughter home in one piece."

"What about me?" Cal asked.

"I suppose we need you back too," Al nodded. "After all, I'd hate to have to come out of retirement."

 **June 10** **th** **, 1985**

Ian was actually glad to be back at work. His time in Resembool had helped him clear his head a little and get his thoughts in line. Now he just had to figure out if Bonnie would even let him try to make things right.

He wasn't filming today, which was all right by him. Instead, he had group readings for the script for the new film they were starting work on. He wasn't the lead, but if this went well, it was going to be a huge boost for his reputation. Hunters of Fortune was an a high action adventure film, and he would be co-starring with some of the biggest names he had worked with yet. Oliver Harrison was a big star in his fifties and an established action and drama lead. Ian had seen him in dozens of movies, and knew that most women-including his mother, aunt, sister, cousins-found him attractive and liked his acting. He was everything Ian could aspire to as a career actor.

Ian wasn't getting the woman in this movie, but his character, Ryan Spark, wouldn't be left completely out of the romance market. Oliver's character, Tom Hudson, was known for 'procuring' items by less-than-legal means when they were stolen, or as a bodyguard for hire for the rich and powerful. _Hunters of Fortune_ was actually the fourth Tom Hudson movie. Ian's character was a younger rough-around-the-edges soldier of fortune, down on his luck, who got hired by Tom for a job because of his special skills. They would be assisted by Tom's old flame, Ginger Stone, played by award winning actress Miranda Fields.

Ian didn't think there was a man alive who didn't have at least a little bit of a fan crush on Miranda Fields., himself included. At least when he was younger. He liked to think he had moved beyond that kind of reaction to other actors at this point. They were never their characters, and some of them weren't at all the people they were on screen.

This was his first time to meet either of the well-known actors in person. He knew more of the supporting cast, having been with many of them in several shows and films.

Ian tried not to swallow his tongue as he entered the practice room. Oliver and Mirana were already there. Today's practice focused on Oliver and Ryan's early scenes, and the introduction of Miranda's character, who hadn't been seen since the first film.

They looked up from their conversation. Almost at once, both of them smiled. Oliver extended his hand. "Ian! Nice to finally meet you."

"Thank you," Ian took the hand, shaking it firmly, and resisting the urge to call the man sir. "I'm honored to be working with both of you." He turned to Miranda, who also extended her hand in a warm gesture.

"Well we're glad to have you on board," Oliver replied as he gestured for them all to take seats on the couches and chairs around the coffee table. "I told Tanner you'd be perfect for the role of Ryan."

Ian managed not to look too surprised. "You asked for me?" He didn't know that Oliver had seen the auditions.

The man grinned as he took a seat in a plush green recliner and picked up the script. "If you hadn't auditioned on your own, I'd have told him to hunt you down. I watched all the audition tapes. I've read every one of the old Tom Hudson novels working on this role, and I've seen your work. I think you've got the right feel for Ryan, and you'll fit the film."

"No pressure, right?" Ian chuckled. "Well, thank you, sir. That means a lot."

"Just call me Oliver, Ian," he said. "I'm not formal."

"Me neither," Miranda finally chimed in. "First names are fine. We're all part of a team after all." Then she picked up her script. "I thought we might start a little before the director gets here and get a feel for each other's styles. Do we want to start where my character comes in?"

"That would make sense," Ian agreed, flipping quickly in his script as he took a seat at one end of the old, comfortable blue velvet sofa. It was an exciting reveal scene, one the fans were sure to love given Miranda's character's popularity in the first movie, and the character's dramatic disappearance near the end of the film that had left audiences wondering for several years.

As they started, Ian tried to stay focused, but he couldn't help the thrill of pleasure as he jumped into Ryan's character, and Oliver responses. He had a feeling he was going to enjoy working with these particular experienced veterans.

* * *

Ian was almost floating as he walked back to his trailer after rehearsal. He, Oliver, and Miranda had run through the scene a couple of times before Tanner's arrival. They had clicked almost immediately, and the rehearsal had gone about as well as it was possible for a first read to go.

He caught himself whistling the tune to one of his old songs as he closed the door to his trailer.

"I was wondering when you'd be done."

He paused. The voice was female, and he recognized it. Unfortunately, it wasn't Bonnie. "Hello, Angie." Ian turned around.

Angie was lounging on his sofa, still dressed from the day's shoot, he suspected, given the skin-tight strapless blue dress she was wearing. There was an open wine bottle on the table and two glasses. She smiled, standing slowly, sensuously. "I thought you might like a little warm welcome home."

All sorts of warnings were going off in Ian's head. "I appreciate that, Angie, but I already had dinner with my family."

She chuckled, not taking the hint. "Silly. I meant something more… personal." She closed the short distance between them. "I haven't seen you since we finished filming." Her head tilted coyly to one side. "Don't tell me you've forgotten me so easily."

"Well I—"

Her lips pressed against his, cutting off any comment or objection Ian might have voiced. Arms wrapped around his neck, and her chest pressed against him. She smelled like expensive perfume.

 _This is wrong._ Ian brought his hands up between them to push her away. Behind him, he heard the door swing open.

"Tanner told me to bring you this…"

 _Shit._ Ian shoved Angie away. "Bonnie!" he gasped, turned towards her. "This isn't—"

Shock vanished behind a cold, furious mask, and eyes that glared daggers at Angie. Bonnie set the hat and vest she was carrying down on the table right inside his door.

"Tanner wants you to try these on." Then she spun and vanished out the door.

"No!" Ian lunged for the door, but slender fingers grabbed his wrist.

"Ian!" Angie laughed. "What's the problem? It's just the costume girl."

"How dare you!" Ian spun on her so fast he almost lost his footing. Fury filled him. She had planned this, he realized. "Get the hell out of my trailer!" He spun, with her hand still on his it wasn't hard to yank her around and propel her towards the door. "Get out!"

Angie stumbled on the stairs due to her high heels, and fell into the dust with a squeak of surprise.

Ian didn't bother with the steps, he cleared them easily as he hit the ground, eyes darting desperately around looking for Bonnie. She was already out of sight. _Damn it!_ She could walk so quickly when she wanted. Praying he guessed right, Ian headed for wardrobe at a sprint.

"Maxine!" he gasped as he came in the door and spotted one of the other women who worked wardrobe. "Is Bonnie here?"

"No," Maxine blinked, startled by his appearance in the doorway. She pushed her thick, dark curls out of her face. They were always threatening to fall out of the scarf she kept them half-wrapped in on top of her head. "She was delivering some uniform pieces to your trailer, and Oliver's."

Oliver. "Thanks, Maxine," he said, and vanished.

Outside, he headed towards Oliver's trailer, but his dart had caused a stir. Angie had regained her feet, and was dusting herself off with the help of a couple of crew members. One of her knees was skinned from the impact.

Ian wasn't sorry. The problem was, there was someone there with a camera and a press badge. Could today get any worse?

"Can I help you?" he walked up to the man without pause. He had to nip this before it became another scandal. It was possible nothing he said would stop it, but he had to try.

"Ah! Ian Elric, just the man I wanted to see," the reporter grinned. "Care to comment on why you just shoved Miss Simpson down a flight of stairs?"

"I didn't shove Miss Simpson anywhere," he replied. "She barged into my trailer uninvited and injected her nosy self into my personal business. She wouldn't leave, so I showed her the door."

"So this isn't a lover's quarrel."

"I wouldn't sleep with her if she were the last woman on earth.," Ian said coldly, "And you'd better quote it accurately."

By the time he got free of the reporter, and Angie had hobbled off to get her knee taken care of, it was too late. Ian went to Oliver's trailer to find that Bonnie had been and gone. By the time he got back to wardrobe again, Bonnie had left for the day.

It was lucky Angie was long by then as well, or Ian might have been tempted to give her a black eye to go with the skinned knee…that was, if he hit girls. The worst part was, his new resolve to be the man Bonnie needed meant that if he meant it, he was going to be spending the evening alone, miserable, and sober.

* * *

Bonnie had never been so furious or embarrassed in her life. She had thought the bikini disaster was bad, but walking into Ian's trailer on his first day back, finding him drinking and kissing with _… that slut._ She had fled before she could throw something at him or burst into tears, or say something that would make everything worse. Though she wasn't sure how that was possible. All those heartfelt messages on her machine that she hadn't known how to answer…and now this? It didn't make sense, but she hadn't wanted to get into it right there, not in the middle of work.

Maxine had told her, as she was heading out, that Ian had come looking for her, looking upset, but Bonnie hadn't had the time to wait around to see if he came back again. Not with a delivery to run from her apartment to the Silvermans' office. She wasn't sure what she would say if Ian did come back. Scream, probably. Which was why she had left. With her emotions in knots all she could have done was made it worse. She needed time to think.

Angie _had_ to have set the whole thing up. Bonnie knew Ian had been in rehearsals all day, and Angie had made it very clear in his absence that any woman who got in the way of her attempts to get at Ian would be in a world of hurt.

Bonnie hadn't taken her seriously. So many women in this business were divas, and most of them were all talk. Apparently, Angie wasn't.

 _But why did he have to kiss her?_

Bonnie almost threw the plate she was washing across her apartment. Instead, she set it in the drying rack and picked up the next one. She had been doing so much work on her line for Silverman's in the evenings that she had let the dishes back up.

The phone rang.

Bonnie let it ring. Her hands were deep in soapy water and besides, she wasn't sure she dared to answer it.

The machine picked up, and ran through her usual 'leave a message' greeting.

"Hey, Bonnie. It's me. If you're home, please pick up the phone," Ian's voice came through the little tinny speaker. There was silence for several seconds. "Okay, look, I just want to explain about what happened, even if you don't believe me. Angie cornered me this afternoon. She was already in my trailer when I got back from rehearsal. She didn't let me talk, she just _kissed_ me. I was trying to push her away when you came in. I kicked her out and tried to find you, but I kept missing you, and then there was this reporter interviewing Angie about her bloody knee, and lying in the dust outside my trailer after I tossed her out and… and I had to deal with that, though you'll probably get an eyeful of it in the _Starlight Gazette_ next week about how I'm some sort of abusive boyfriend or hiding some lame illicit affair." His voice sounded bitter, and tired.

Bonnie started scrubbing a glass. She could visualize his expression only too well.

"Anyway, I know you're tired of hearing this, but I'm sorry. I'm sorry there was such a misunderstanding. I'm sorry _again_ for what happened before I left. How I feel hasn't changed… today started out so great…and now it's complete crap. So there, that's it, I guess. Call me when you get this…"  
Bonnie bit her lip, then turned and crossed the living room, reaching for the phone, hands still dripping with dish soap.

"…and I hope you have a good night."

"Hello! Ian?"

Nothing on the other end of the line but dial tone.

Bonnie wasn't sure why he loved her, but her insides twisted with guilt. Taking a steady breath, she set the phone down, picked it up again, and dialed Ian's number.  
It rang several times before going to his machine. Bonnie resisted the urge to hang up. "Uh…hi, Ian. I got your call and… and I just want to say I understand and… I'm sorry. Angie… she, she's been warning girls away from you while you were gone. She said… she said she planned to have you. I thought she was just blowing hot hair but…I meant to tell you. I hadn't seen you yet. I… thank you, for apologizing." She kept talking, hoping he would pick up but it felt awkward. "Anyway, thanks."

She hung up the phone, and leaned back against the wall. _Maybe I should just give up on this. It can go on my list of failed non-relationships._

* * *

Ian hadn't bothered to stick around. As soon as he hung up the phone he was out the door. Not that he was entirely sure where he was going. He just knew he didn't want to sit around his apartment at the end of what had started out as such a great day.

He headed downtown. There were plenty of restaurants, arcades, stores, and other distractions that were good, clean fun. Maybe he'd even take in a movie; something without Angie in it.

It was amazing how easy it was to go incognito on the streets. Ian had made an art out of not looking quite like himself when he went out. He didn't have to disguise himself really, just dress like any average guy, brush his hair differently, and make sure he didn't look like any of his characters. He also tended to keep his voice down. So he was left pretty much in peace as he ate alone. He stopped by his favorite greasy spoon, devoured two double-large burgers with all the trimmings, fries, and the biggest chocolate shake they had.

Afterwards, he ended up at the movie theater, where he could sit in the dark without being bothered. He got a large bucket of popcorn and a soda, and watched through a double-feature. The first movie wasn't quite terrible; it was a fairly dorky romantic comedy with a main character who bordered on unbelievable. It was raunchy, silly, and all together just mindless enough for his mood.

It was a mistake to stay for the primary feature, which turned out to be a romantic historical drama that ended up with the man losing the girl he loved, first through a series of unfortunate misunderstandings, and then dying in her arms just as they made up.

 _I picked a hell of a time to stop getting drunk._


	9. Chapter 9

**June 14** **th** **, 1985**

The Elric-Everhart wedding was an intimate affair, though when it came to the Elric family, that word meant something a little different than most. Still, the guest list had been kept to immediate family, cousins, and close friends on both sides. Alyse found them a cute little country club venue just outside of Central that was perfect for a June ceremony. The rolling green lawns and landscaped flowerbeds, as well as a small pond with a fountain in the middle, were perfect. The club's main building had a lovely slate patio outside, and plenty of outdoor seating had been available for the reception. They also provided catering that was delicious, and at surprisingly good prices, which Alyse knew Ethan had appreciated, since he was footing the bill for the entire thing.

They had chosen a bright, simple, color scheme of golden-yellow and white, with light green accents, which was perfect given the glorious daffodil and yellow flowerbeds. The chairs were white, and the tablecloths from the club were pale yellow. The centerpieces, designed by Lily and Lia, were simple, yellow lotus blossoms floating in little clear bowls of water.

The summer day turned out perfectly, with temperate, sunny weather and temperatures in the low eighties.

It was a simple, heartfelt ceremony. Lily-looking radiant in a simple, floor-length strapless white silk gown, tied at the waist with golden silk ribbon that flowed down the back of the dress. Her hair was pulled partially back using the same ribbon.

Randy wore a beige suit that complimented the golds and yellows, with a tie of sage-green and golden stripes.

The bridesmaids—Gloria, Kamika, and Callie—wore three different colors, with the effect that they shaded from golden-yellow to a deep spring green, in simple but elegant cocktail length dresses. Randy's groomsmen were all friends of his. Rosa got to be the flower girl; decked out in extra-pale yellow ruffles.

"Thank you," Lia whispered to her as they stood off to one side afterwards, as the photographer was doing couples portraits and the rest of the guests were milling about eating hors d'oeuvres and waiting for the meal. "I don't know how we would have put it together so quickly without you."

"You're welcome, but I think you would have been fine," Alyse assured her. "It's easy when everyone pitches in and the bride knows what she wants."

"Still, you've made this easier for all of us," Lia smiled. "I wasn't worried about Lily. It's Ethan who's been all in a knot about it."

Alyse looked at her cousin, who was watching the photographer work with Lily and Randy, who were smiling adoringly at each other as they posed under a white rose trellis, resplendent in yellow blossoms. "After as long as it took him to propose to you, he deserves it," she replied in good humor. "He should just be grateful she's marrying someone she's known for so long." If she had come home engaged to a boy she had just met in college, Alyse would have understood Ethan's anxieties. As it was, the couple had been together for almost four years already. If they thought they could make it work, Alyse was happy for them. "So they're really going to a cabin for their honeymoon?"

Lia nodded. "Yes. One of Randy's friends' families has a little summer cabin on a lake just a few hours from here. Charming little town, lots of privacy. They're just planning to spend a few days."

That did sound lovely. "Where are they going to stay when they get back to Central?" she asked curiously. She hadn't wanted to pry too much by asking Lily and Randy directly, but Lia wouldn't mind indulging Alyse's natural curiosity.

"With friends," Lia replied, smiling when Alyse looked surprised. "They've got a spare room, and they decided that it might be less complicated for everyone if they didn't try and split time between our house and the Everharts'."

She could see that. "Nothing wrong with that as long as you get to see them."

"Oh we will, I'm sure." Lia nodded. "Lily and Eamon want to spend as much time together as they can while they're both home. Send them over a thousand miles apart, and they're still twins."

* * *

Another wedding, another event with no date. Ian tried not to feel bitter, but it was getting hard. At least the last time his would-be date and he had been on speaking terms. Now he was lonely in a sea of family having a good time. Aside from all of the family currently living in Central, Grandpa Ed, Granny Winry, his parents, and Callie had come up from Resembool. Not everyone had been able to make it, but that was understandable. Ian knew that dairies were busy all year round, and that taking all the children anywhere was a handful. He still wasn't sure how they had managed it all the way out to Creta last year. Maybe that was why they had decided it was too much to go this year.

Ian felt a little guilty, but he spent a lot of it avoiding his father. He knew his old man would ask how things were going with Bonnie, and that was one subject he didn't want to talk about with anyone. While work on the new movie was going fantastically—including the fact that Angie was now studiously avoiding him—his personal life felt worse than ever. Bonnie had accepted his apology via voice message, but that hadn't really improved their interactions at work. In person, things were still tepid and awkward in the few moments they had during the day. Wardrobe was almost never empty, so they were almost never alone.

Instead, he spent time hanging out with Ted, Coran, anyone who would converse with him without touching on the sensitive B-word.

* * *

Ethan had never given much thought to the idea of father-daughter dances; not until he was dancing with his daughter, at her wedding, and she bore another man's name. Somewhere between diapers, skinned knees, and music lessons, his little Lily had blossomed into a woman, who smiled radiantly, tears even in her smiling eyes as they danced, and then she hugged him close and whispered, "I love you, Daddy."

Ethan hugged her back. "You know you'll always be my special girl." He had two sons, but only one daughter. Lily had always been sensible, and he had simply given in and decided he was over-reacting if no one else thought this was rushing things. "I'm happy for you."

"Thanks." She smiled. "I know this isn't easy for you. Randy and I both appreciate everything you've done, especially not panicking."

"Who said I'd panic?" Ethan asked, grinning, but feeling slightly sheepish. He had done his best to hide it.

"Mom, who else?" Lily replied as their dance ended, and Eamon stepped up to steal away his sister.

Ethan stepped back and looked for Lia who was over on the sidelines. She looked resplendent in a soft green-and-gold ombre gown. The music started again. "May I have this dance?"

Lia took his hand and followed him onto the dance floor. "This, and every dance for the rest of our lives."

 **June 15** **th** **, 1985**

There was something particularly enjoyable about getting back to nature and being one with the earth, Urey thought, though he suspected it had more to do with the company than that he enjoyed weeding.

This later-afternoon's enjoyable activity was helping Raina with the little plot of garden in front of her house. It was, he had been surprised to discover, a reasonably good-sized house. The previous owners had out-grown it and moved to a bigger one further out of town. While it might have been snug for a family of seven, it was large for a single woman. It was a cute little farmhouse with a wrap-around porch, all painted white, with dark green trim. Three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a large opening living area and kitchen.

The flowerbeds already had plants in them, but they hadn't seen enough tending and were a little over-grown.

"I'm afraid we didn't do a lot of weeding in South City," Raina had apologized as they got started. "Thanks so much for this," she said after a few minutes of working together in companionable silence. "I really enjoy the house, but it's a lot of work, and I just don't have enough time during the school year."

"It's all right," Urey assured her. "I can only imagine how you wrangle so many kids at once all year and manage to teach them anything!"

"Oh they aren't that bad," she chuckled. "I love little kids."

"So I noticed. Yurian adores you." Urey replied, then his face flushed as he thought about how that might sound.

Raina glanced over at him as she pulled a dandelion. "I enjoyed having him this year. I'm going to miss not seeing him in class every day."

That was right. Urey hadn't even thought about the fact that Raina would not be teaching his son anymore now that it was summer. If she was no longer his teacher, there was no longer any real impediment to their seeing each other more often. Not that it had kept him from it in the first place, but up until now, their public interactions had remained generally acceptable. "That doesn't' mean you can't see him whenever you want," he pointed out. "Or me."

Raina leaned over the low flowering bush between them. "Why _Mr. Elric_ , are you coming on to me?"

He was sure his face and ears were bright red, but Urey nodded and, seizing the moment, leaned across and kissed her.

It had been a long time since he had kissed anyone. Too long, his body insisted, as he felt flushed from his head to his feet. Raina didn't hesitate to return it either; and so they remained that way, locked over the fluffy pink begonia blossoms, until breathing became a necessity.

"Wow." Raina blinked at him as they parted. Her cheeks were rosy as the flowers.

Urey's sentiments exactly. A rush of inspiration came over him, and before he knew it he was jumping to his feet with Raina looked at him, puzzled. "If there was one thing you could have in your garden, what would it be?" he asked. "Anything at all."

"That's easy," she replied, recovering quickly. "Blue roses. It's my favorite color."

It was so easy, he could have done that in his sleep. Urey grabbed a broken piece of slate and dropped to the ground, drawing in the dirt with a fervor he hadn't felt in years. He could do this, and it would be perfect.

Raina came over. He could feel her standing over him, watching him with extreme curiosity but, for once, she didn't speak. She seemed to sense he needed to work.

It didn't take long, especially with the basics of what he needed blooming all around him. Forget-me-nots, hydrangeas, roses…. Urey places his hands on the circle and smiled. "Watch this."

He plunged into the alchemical energy, letting it flow through him, and the circle, and the garden. _Grow babies,_ he urged them, as he felt them start to come together, and form, growing and crawling upwards. Raina gasped behind him, and he knew it was working.

When Urey stopped and looked up, to either side of Raina's front porch steps stood two, huge rosebushes, covered in velvety light blue blossoms, edges in a darker hue.

"Oh… Urey, they're beautiful!"

He got up from his knees, and had barely made it to his feet before she kissed him again. Urey was startled, but only for a moment. Then, he gave in, and his arms wrapped around her waist as they embraced.

He was beginning to like gardening.

 **June 19** **th** **, 1985**

Cal had planned his and Alyse's romantic getaway with a very specific plan in mind; to spoil his wife the way she deserved to be spoiled, and to give them both as much relaxation and enjoyment as they could stand. They both needed a real vacation from their responsibilities, and he wanted to do things they would both enjoy, giving them some time to reconnect on a personal level. That was something he always tried to make time for, but sometimes it was hard to fit in. _We both work too hard._

Of course, that work was paying for this trip, so he couldn't complain too much.

They were staying over for two nights in Havah on their way south. Alyse had never been to Aerugo, and Cal wanted to make sure her trip was as enjoyable as it could be. His own previous experiences here had not exactly been fun either. He seemed to get shot, sick, or blown up every time he came to the country.

He hoped that a vacation getaway would prove to be the exception.

The hotel room certainly met with Alyse's approval. A huge, king size bed, a whirlpool tub, and a view of one of the city parks, rich with local vegetation. It even had a television, should they be so inclined to lay about with a movie or see what was on the local stations.

"So what do you have planned for this evening?" Alyse asked, clearly dying of curiosity. Being the party planner, Cal had told her that she was not allowed to do any planning on this trip. He had purposefully scheduled in some days for spontaneously doing whatever they felt like, but he hadn't let her make any arrangements in advance.

"Tonight, we dine out," Cal kissed her cheek. "Wear something fun, we're going to _The Calonda_ club for dinner, a show, and a little dancing." There were shows in almost every restaurant and casino in Havah every night, but Cal had chosen something more upscale and classy, though the local dancing was almost as spicy as the cuisine.

"Fun, huh?" Alyse smiled thoughtfully before she kissed him back. "I think I know just the thing."

"Oh?" Cal asked as she stepped away and he reluctantly let her go to her suitcase, and her folding hanging bag, from which she pulled one of several dresses she had packed for this trip. He hadn't been allowed to see what she had shopped for.

Alyse turned around, and held up an evening dress in deep blue with a subtle shimmer. It had a deep v-neck, straps but no sleeves, and Cal could just imagine how it would look on his wife. "What do you think?" she asked.

"I think, I can't wait to see it on you," he replied, resisting the urge to add _so I can take it off you again at the end of the night._

Alyse could read his mind anyway. "Haven't you learned patience? Let me go change, and we can go!" She took the dress, and her bag of bathroom and hair supplies, and vanished.

Cal went to pull out his own clothes. He would join her later. For now, he was glad he had brought his bright blue silk shirt. They would be a striking pair.

 **June 20** **th** **, 1985**

Ian wasn't sure why he was fishing through the costume vault, trying to find the jacket he had worn in the last season of _Amestris High_ other than he had been told they wanted it for a promotional they were shooting. It would be _nostalgic,_ they said.

Given it made Ian think of Reggie, he wasn't sure he wanted the nostalgia.

Two rows over he heard the door to the building open, then shut with a metallic clang. Chances were it was someone actually in wardrobe who could tell him where to find the jacket in question. "Hey!" he called out, turning the corner. "Could you-" He stopped dead.

Bonnie was staring at him as if a ghost had just appeared in front of her. Her arms were filled with dresses. "What are you looking for?" she asked, snapping into business mode.

 _Sure, close me off again. I'm just one of those party-boy actors you can't stand._ "My jacket from Amestris High. Tanner thinks it would be good for the promotional they're shooting next week."

"Fourth row, top rack, fifth section."

Well, that was easy. "How do you know that?"

"I actually work here."

Ian bit his tongue on the acerbic response that sprang to it. "I meant your memory never ceases to impress me," he replied without any of his usual smooth tone. "I should get it and get going."

"I'll get it. It'll be faster." Bonnie put the dresses on the nearest rack and vanished into the forest of fabric.

No, this wasn't awkward. Not at all.

Bonnie returned shortly with the jacket question. "Here you are. Was that all you needed?"

"Yes, thanks." Ian took it and nodded, ignoring the voice in his head screamed to speak. He had tried to hunt her down when she was alone for weeks, and now when they were alone… he was afraid to speak. His resolve dissolved entirely. He turned to go—

-and the door held fast.

Ian pushed again. "It's locked."

"What?" Bonnie pushed past him. "It was just open. Let me see that." She tried the handle, but the door didn't budge. "What's wrong with this thing?"

"I told you." Ian sighed, looking around for a solution. "Is there another door?"  
Bonnie shook her head. "No."

That was what he was afraid of. "Will someone else come soon?"

"If we wait a while, there should be plenty of folks in here at the end of the day," Bonnie replied. "In two or three hours."

"So, we sit here until then?" It was a good thing he didn't have any more scenes today, Ian supposed. He had finished another read through that morning.

Bonnie frowned. "I don't see that we have much choice." She pulled a pincushion out of her pocket. "Well, no reason I can't work in here then. I was going to do the hemming tomorrow. But I guess it can be done now."

"Is that all you do?" Ian asked, feeling a little irritated.

"What, work?" Bonnie didn't even look his way as she dragged over a dress form into the best light. "Anything worth doing is worth putting full effort into it."

"Are you implying that I do not?"

"I…" then her tongue faltered. Bonnie did not look at him, but she paused in her movement and took a deep, slow breath. "Ian. I'm sorry."

"It's not like you locked the door on purpose."  
"Not that!" Bonnie turned and glared at him. "I… mean how I've treated you lately."

"I haven't been entirely fair either," Ian replied before he could chicken out of it. "But it hurts, Bonnie. I thought you knew me better than that by now."

"I'm sorry."

"I got that." He managed a weak smile he didn't entirely feel. Ian just didn't want to fight again, especially not while they were locked in together with no escape. "And… I didn't mean to press so hard. I know why you won't date me. It's why I stopped asking. You mean a lot to me. I was afraid if I told you how I felt, you'd reject me."

"And… I proved you right." Bonnie's face flushed. "I guess, I knew before you said anything, but I wanted to pretend we were just friends."

"Were we ever going to be more?" Ian asked softly. "How _do_ you feel about me, Bonnie? If you just want to stay friends, I'll never bring this up again. I'll even promise to do my best to move on. I just… I need to know." _Now or never, Elric._

Bonnie fidgeted. "What will you do if you don't like my answer?"

Not a fair question. Ian sighed. "What I just said. I can't promise much more than that."

Bonnie nodded. "All right. Honestly… I _do_ like you. You've been a good friend. You're funny, and kind, and you've helped me out in so many ways; introducing me to your Grandfather for one thing. You haven't asked for anything else…. I shouldn't have accused you of being like that. I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions with Angie. I knew better! I'm just…"

"Afraid. I know, but you have to trust _someone,_ _some_ time, Bonnie. Not all guys are like your ex-boyfriends. Some of us are pretty decent… especially because we've met you." He wished she would look him in the eyes. He hated that things had ever fallen this far.

"I don't know if we can go back to just being friends," Bonnie spoke softly. "I mean, it's not like I can ignore that you said you love me."

"I've never felt this way about anyone else." Ian had said it before, but it bore repeating. "Not being able to just be the way we were even has been killing me. Us as practically strangers… it's like I can't _breathe_ without you. The world just… it's so much less when we're not talking to each other."

"Wow." Her eyes had gone a little wide at his declaration.

"Yeah, I know, right?" He tried to make his tone light, but failed. "Bonnie, if you don't love me, I can't force it, and I don't want to hurt you anymore than I already have."

"So, where does that leave us?" Bonnie asked. "I honestly don't know, Ian. I miss being with you too, but I'm so confused, and scared. I thought I was in love before, and both times it was a _huge_ mistake."

"Kiss me." The words came unbidden to his lips, but Ian didn't try to retract them.

"What?" Danger flashed in her eyes. Bonnie took a step backwards, as if she might flee. Not that she had anywhere to go.

"Just once," Ian held up both hands in a 'wait a moment' gesture. "Hear me out. Kiss me once. If you don't feel anything, I'll drop the subject. If you can honestly tell me you're not attracted to me, you feel nothing but friendship, I'll let it go."

Bonnie looked like she wanted to refuse immediately, but then she stopped, and looked thoughtful for nearly a minute.

Ian stood, waiting for a response, whether it was a yes or a slap in the face. He wouldn't have placed bets either way.

After what seemed like an eternity, Bonnie nodded. "All right. One kiss." Then she stepped in suddenly, before he had a chance to prepare.

Their lips touched, and Ian felt his own immediate, electric response. For a moment he wondered frantically if he should hold back; try not to scare her or be too forward, but then he was lost in the heat of the moment, the softness of her touch, the sweet taste of honeyed tea on her mouth. Her stance softened, and resistance faded as they were both swept away in the immediate sensation.

Ian's arms moved cautiously, slowly, up until he was holding Bonnie; his hands pressing ever so lightly so that her body was against his. He gave a little more. It was easy when he craved her so very badly. Achingly slow, his hands moved to the hem of her sweater. Then, skillfully, his fingers hooked under the edge, between the sweater and the t-shirt underneath, and instead of pulling it off, he just let his hands run up and down her back, urging them both on.

If Bonnie had been a cat, Ian would have sworn she started purring. He peeked an eye open briefly, gauging her reaction. Her eyes were closed, her face flushed. She was so very, very attractive.

 _There's no way you're not into this._

Ian closed his eyes, and it became a strain not to push things too far. He thought he might lose control if he let it go much further, but she wasn't fighting him, and this was far more than the brief kiss he had been anticipating.

As she pressed into him Ian took a step back to brace himself, and had only enough time to register his foot slipping on the hem of a bit of silk and the concrete floor—

—before he was tumbling down, grabbing Bonnie and rolling to protect her as they careened into the nearest rack of clothes, and tumbled down –dresses and coats and hats and all- to the floor.

Ian had never been so grateful for bulky costumes until that moment, as he lay on top of two voluminous ball gowns, holding a shocked Bonnie tightly against his chest. He blinked, and propped himself up on one elbow to peer over the mounts of blue and mauve fabric. "Are you all right?" he looked at Bonnie.

It was several seconds before he realized she was shaking... because she was crying. "Bonnie?" He leaned back just a little so he could see her face. She didn't try and pull away, but her face was streaked with tears. "What's wrong?"

She shook her head, and strands of hair stuck to her face. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry, Ian." "It wasn't that bad was it?" He tried to lighten the mood.

"It's not you..."

"Then what is it?" He had to fight the urge to hug her as she sat back. He had the feeling that would be the wrong response. He waited instead, letting her get her composure.

"I like you," she said finally, sniffing. "I'm just- terrified."

"Of what?" Ian fished into his pocket and pulled out a clean handkerchief. He knew her last two relationships had not worked out well, but outside of knowing the guys had both been unfaithful jerks, he had never gotten much in the way of details. "You know I'd never hurt you."

Bonnie took the handkerchief, and nodded slowly. "Intellectually, I know that. But... I've always been a horrible judge when it comes to relationships. Rodney and Jason both seemed nice when I started dating them. They were flattering, attentive, and they seemed honest. Turned out they were just better actors. Rodney was never faithful to me. I only found out later... he was with five other girls during the six months we were dating. Sometimes... he would hook up with them while we were at a party-together. He would vanish, and be back less than half an hour later. I thought he was talking with friends, or he'd say he'd gone to the restroom." She shook her head and wiped her nose.

"And Jason?" Ian urged gently. He had never gotten this much information out of her before and it was distressing, seeing her so vulnerable. Bonnie always put on an air of having it all together, even in the chaos of her apartment. He'd seen her with her guard down around her family. He'd never known about any of this. He might never hear it again.

Bonnie shuddered, and the tears started to flow freely again.

Ian felt immediately guilty. "I'm sorry. If you don't want to talk about it-"

She shook her head. "You have a right to know. Jason... he was okay most of the time. But his career wasn't going anywhere really. As he lost popularity he— drank more and then... then he started on the drugs. He was so _angry_ when he was drinking. And he'd start shouting, and then if he really lost his temper...he'd get violent."

Ian didn't like where this was going. He felt anger swelling up inside him at the thought of anyone hurting her. Then he had a horrible thought. "Oh...shit. He didn't rape you?" If he had, _someone_ needed more than a punch to the face.

"No." Her voice cracked as she shook her head. "We were lovers... but he never forced me. He'd hit me though. That's why I left him when I realized I couldn't do anything. But I tried so hard to help him get through it, but..."

"Oh, Bonnie..." He couldn't resist and gave in to the impulse to reach out, laying a hand gently on her shoulder. He made sure to keep the palm open. Ian knew what the world of professional entertainment could do to a person. Actors and musicians weren't the most stable lot to begin with, and sometimes... even when you thought you knew someone... there was nothing you could do. His insides were tying up in knots just thinking about the man who had dared lay a hand on her. "I'd like to pound him," he admitted.

"Good luck," Bonnie quipped. "Jason's been in prison for the past two years. He was involved in a drug deal that went bad, he didn't even try to plead innocent. I... I saw it in the news."

 _Lucky him_. Ian wasn't about to break into a prison to punch a guy. "I wish I knew what I could do to make this better," he said finally, at a loss for anything better. "I feel like such a jerk."

Bonnie blinked up at him, green eyes wide and startled. "You didn't know. I should have told you earlier, especially since I know you how feel. You've never been secretive about it." She wiped her eyes again. "It's my problem, but I haven't been fair to you."

Ian couldn't say he disagreed, but he understood her perspective. "It's not the kind of thing I'd expect you to want to talk about." His hand moved, rubbing her shoulder slightly, in the same subconscious comforting way his mother had done when he was little. "So... what do you want?" he asked finally.

Bonnie shrugged, but did not shake off his hand. "I want to be in a relationship without being afraid I'm making a huge mistake. After I left Jason, I saw a counselor for a while. I thought I was over it, but it was easier... when I wasn't interested in someone."

Had she just...? "Soooo..."

"Yes, you egotist," Bonnie nudged him in the side with a finger, though she didn't quite meet his eyes. "I really like you… a lot. I admit it."

His heart leapt momentarily, but Ian didn't quite dare hope. "I guess the better question is, do you trust me?" He waited until she looked him in the eyes. "You know how I feel about you. I love you. I would rather give up my career than hurt you, but what matters to me most is your happiness."

For several long seconds she simply stared at him. "Do you mean that?"

"Of course I do."

"You would give up your career... for me?"

He had said that, hadn't he? "Yeah. I will, if that's what it takes to be with you."

Bonnie bit her lip. "I'm not going to ask that of you. It wouldn't be fair... but it means a lot that you would." She reached out tentatively and squeezed his free hand. "You're right, though. In three years you've never lied to me, or taken advantage of me."

"There's also that haven't dated a girl in three years thing," Ian pointed out with what he hoped was a light, teasing grin.

"There are miracles," Bonnie replied, a hint of a smile forming at the edges of her mouth.

 _There's my girl._ "Yeah, well, none of them would be worth it." Ian shrugged. "You are the woman I want to be with. If that means we take it slow, that's fine. You can make all the first moves. I'll take my cues off you."

"And you're sure you want to?" There was a heavy dose of skepticism in her tone.

Ian's smile widened. Somehow, he felt that this was going to turn out better than he had feared. "I've had a lot of time to think about us. I'm a better person with you in my life. I'm the person I want to be with you in my life. You've been nothing but supportive and honest with me ever since we met, even when it was something I didn't want to hear. But... this isn't about me." He held her hand a little tighter. "It's about us, and us only happens if you want it to. What matters is that you feel safe, and happy. If you can't feel those things with me, than there's only so much I can do."

Bonnie nodded, and the ends of her mouth twitched a little wider. "You're right. I... want to try. I do trust you. I want you around. I just... I can't promise how fast things will go. I honestly expected you to give up on me by now."

"We're here in a pile of costumes on the floor... and you just kissed me." Ian chuckled quietly. "I'm not going anywhere."

"Until they unlock the door."

"And then hopefully I'm taking you with me," he pointed out. "I missed this. Not talking with you, and joking with you, and just hanging out on the couch... it's been torture. The whole time I was gone you were all I thought about."

"You didn't even think about food?"

She was joking, he realized. "Not consciously," Ian replied. "It's hard to think about eating when I'm worried about you."

"And all that worrying makes more work for me when I have to adjust your costumes." Bonnie leaned in a little, shifting to rest her head on his shoulder. Taking the invitation, Ian tentatively let his arm slide loosely around her shoulder. "I suppose someone has to make sure you eat properly." At that she giggled slightly; a very strange sound coming from her. She started to stand, and Ian reluctantly let her go. "I'm not used to tumbling over and knocking down racks of expensive clothes."

"We should probably pick these up," Ian agreed, even though his body was screaming. He was lying here next to the woman he desired more than any other… and it wasn't going anywhere. After over three years of semi-willingly enforced celibacy, his less cultured instincts wanted release. He made himself sit up first and offer her a hand. "But you haven't _really_ answered my question."

As he helped Bonnie to her feet, she held his hand a moment longer than necessary before she let go and bent to pick up the clothes they had tossed into chaos. "What would you call us?" she asked. "If we're more than friends, but not really dating? I mean, dating someone seems foolish if you consider it a way of getting to know someone. We already know each other. We've been hanging around together for years. My little sister still swoons when she sees your movies."

"And I fall for the sister who wants to stick my head in the mud half the time. Yeah, I know. I'm hopeless." Ian let her hand go and bent to the task. "Well is there anything wrong with _girlfriend_?" It wasn't like they were engaged. At the moment, she hadn't actually even agreed to go out with him, but he couldn't suggest lovers. A hot kiss and abortive make-out session that ended in tears and souls searching did not qualify them that far just yet. She might still say no, too. He couldn't tell.

"I don't know. I've had boyfriends... lovers. That… that was different than this." Bonnie looked at him as she smoothed the skirt of one of the ball gowns, now safely back on its hanger. "I guess I can't pretend I didn't enjoy that, and I can't keep being scared forever. I just wish you weren't famous."

"I could give up acting and become a hermit," Ian suggested, only halfway joking. "I skipped a premier to spend an evening with you. I'm a better person because of you. Whatever term you want to call it, I don't really care as long as it means that no other man has a claim on your affections. I'm not proposing, I just want a fair shot at your heart. Though," he admitted with a slightly suggestive smile, "It is a shame we were interrupted. This would be a great place to get caught actually involved with a beautiful woman."

A wig, snatched from a hanger, hit him in the face. Thankfully, Bonnie was smiling now, even as she shook her head. "Don't joke. There was enough talk when you talked me into attending that award's ceremony with you, even though you didn't touch me all night and introduced me as your costume designer." That had been nearly a year ago, and it had been one of the best nights of Ian's life so far. An ironic fact, since he had done his best not to be the center of attention.

"I was very appropriate," Ian nodded.

Bonnie nodded, then took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Her words, however, came out a little rushed and nervous. "All right, I admit that it's been rough trying to get through the last month without you too. I miss having you around, and talking with you, and doing things together. I keep thinking of things I want to say to you, and then you're not there, bugging me."

"I feel loved."

"You should." She hung another outfit then turned to him. "Though I can't promise my father won't kill you if this doesn't work out."

Ian took the chance and stepped close, one hand gently cupping her cheek. "Then I'll have to do everything in my power to make sure you're incredibly happy."

Bonnie's face turned rosy, but she leaned in tentatively, accepting the kiss he offered.

His lips very gently brushed hers—

—as the door banged, and they broke apart just in time for the lock to be thrown and the door to open.

"—no idea who locked this stupid thing. Me with an armload of—" Wiley Van, one of the other costume designers grumbled as he opened the door and stepped inside, carrying a heavy stack of leather jackets. His eyes widened slightly as he spotted them standing there. "Everything all right, Bonnie?"

She nodded with surprising calm for someone who had been avoiding him for a month and had just confessed she might love Ian back. "Oh! I'm glad you're here. The door locked while I was getting Ian here this," and she reached out and pulled the Amestris High jacket off a rack and tossed it into Ian's hands. "He's not very good at hunting through here. He doesn't know our system."

"They should just ask us instead of sending actors to find things," Wiley commented with a roll of the eyes. "As long as he's not _bothering_ you again." The look he gave Ian suggested he was fairly sure that Ian was the cause of all of Bonnie's recent misery.

 _Again?_ Ian wasn't sure he wanted to know what the other costume designers thought of him. "Thanks," Ian said to Bonnie, recovering as quickly as he could. He wasn't an actor for nothing. "I need to get this back to my trailer. I appreciate your help."

"No problem," Bonnie nodded with a pleasantly professional smile. "We can make sure it still fits you later."

"Are you suggesting I might be out of shape?"

"No. Just that you might be too scrawny now to fit in it."


	10. Chapter 10

**June 25** **th** **, 1985**

There were days when Edward couldn't sit still, and others when he would still find himself in front of his typewriter, working away for hours at a time. Today was one of those days. This particular project, however, was something special, and decades in the making. He wasn't sure what venue he would approach for publication yet, either. The subject matter was specific, and rather sensitive, but he had decided that it was something that needed to be put down and remembered.

A tap on his study door made him look up, only to realize that he had written right through lunch. Urey stood in the door holding a plate with a sandwich, and a glass of fruit juice. "Hey, Grandpa," he smiled. "Granny asked me to bring this up."

"About time," Ed chuckled as his stomach grumbled in discontent. "What is it?"

"Roast beef." Urey crossed the room and set the plate and glass down on Ed's desk. The sandwich was also stuffed with lettuce, fresh spinach, tomatoes, cheese, and dressing.

"She knows what I like." Ed picked up the sandwich and took a large bite, enjoying the combination of flavors on his tongue.

Urey looked amused. "So, what are you working on?"

Ed swallowed. "My latest crazy idea, what else?" He pushed the short stack of typed pages he had so far across the desk towards Urey. "Take a look, it might interest you." He watched his grandson as Urey picked up the sheaf of papers, and his eyes slowly widened.

"Grandpa, is that what I think it is?"

"The Truth," Ed nodded. "All of it. How to make a philosopher's stone, human transmutation, and homunculi. Everything we know, every attempted method, the dangers…and the consequences."

"It seems awfully dangerous to put that in print." Urey looked skeptical.

Ed shook his head. "I've given it a lot of thought, and this is information that needs to live on, if only to keep others from making these mistakes. Human transmutation can't be done, it doesn't work, and the consequences are dire. All three of these things are interrelated, and there's nothing in writing that shows that, and how disastrous it is to attempt any of them. You know as well as I do how foolish they are. Besides, there are enough people who have attempted to figure it out since, that if they're determined, my writing or not writing it out won't make much difference. Other research is out there."

Urey nodded. "What's going to convince someone they shouldn't try it anyway?"

The grim truth. "It includes every instance I've ever found of everyone who tried human transmutation and failed, including myself, Al, and our teacher, Izumi Curtis." Ed's voice softened. "We've told that story to the students who go through the State Alchemy program, but only in pieces. Everything has always been just enough of what we thought they needed to know." He leaned back in his chair. "We won't be around forever. For all intents and purposes, we're not around as far as the program is concerned. If I don't write this down—if it's not passed on—than in a generation or two, or maybe not even that long, it will be forgotten."

"And the cycle will start over again," Urey looked down at the pages in his hand. Ed could read the look on his face, the on that said _it was almost me._

"Alchemists aren't known for being quitters, or having much common sense." Ed grinned before taking another bite of his sandwich and washing it down with the juice while Urey was reading. "Speaking of sense, how are things with you and Raina?"

Almost immediately, a slow smile spread across Urey's features. For that alone, Ed was grateful to the schoolteacher. Urey looked up and set the pages on the desk. "I haven't felt this happy in a long time," he admitted. "I didn't think I _could,_ but these last few weeks have been like a revelation. I've felt dead inside for a long time. Now… it's like something unplugged and it's slowly draining away, and being replaced with something fresh and alive. Raina… she's wonderful. We have a lot in common, and she's so easy to talk to. She's even fun to debate with!"

Ed chuckled. "That's good."

"You _would_ think so."

"A good argument doesn't hurt anything."

Urey gave an 'I give up' gesture. "It is what it is. I like her… a lot. Maybe more than a lot, but I don't want to rush things too fast."

He didn't have to fill in a reason why. Ed knew. "What does Yurian think of you two going out?"

"Yurian _adores_ her. Heck, he almost knows more about her than I do! If I need a random fact like her favorite color, or favorite fruit, or anything teachers apparently share with their classes, than he's my go-to guy."

The warmth in his voice talking about his son was even better to Ed than listening to Urey talk about Raina. "What are you going to do about him?"

For just a moment, Urey's smile slipped. "I don't know. I want to be there for him, but I don't know how to be a father. I never wanted to be a _bad_ one."

This, Ed understood. "You've got the rest of your lives together to figure it out. We all make mistakes, and sometimes we the people we care about most. I did. You weren't even born yet. Damn that was a long time ago." _Yep, now I feel old._

"Dad and Mom didn't make any mistakes."

"Oh didn't they?" Ed scoffed. "You have great parents. Aldon's almost certainly a better father than I ever was, but that doesn't make any of us perfect. Children drive their parents crazy sometimes. Elric boys are legendary for it. I admit, I almost lost it when your old man called and told me he'd gotten married and they were expecting Coran. I know your father's had plenty of sleepless nights with each of you… because he cares. You don't have to _know how_ to be afather, Urey. You just have to love him and put his needs first and, when he's driving you nuts, come to any one of us for advice." A slow grin crossed Ed's face.

"Thanks, Grandpa." Urey glanced up at the clock, tensing slightly. "I've got to go."

"Evening milking at the dairy?"

Urey grinned as he headed for the door. "Nope. I promised Yurian we'd go swimming, then I'm having dinner at Raina's. She's making this roasted pork recipe that's apparently a family specialty."

Ed chuckled and turned back to his sandwich. "If I didn't know better I'd think she was trying to fatten you up."

"Why do you think I'm going swimming first?"

 **June 27** **th** **, 1985**

It had been a while since Ian had attempted to plan a date with anyone. Somehow, the fact that it was Bonnie made it that much more challenging, just because he wanted it to be perfect, but he knew she wouldn't like it if it looked like he was trying too hard. He also didn't want it to seem like he hadn't put any thought into it at all, with the result that he spent hours making everything perfect, but so it would look like it had been at least passingly easy.

He hadn't been to her place since their revelation in the costume storage building, and she hadn't been to his. They had both been too busy with work to do more than cross paths in wardrobe now that Ian had started primary filming for the new picture. Still, she had agreed to go out with him, and when he suggested dinner—a logical necessity—she had been amenable.

Ian just hoped she liked it. All he had told her the day before was that he would come to her place at five o'clock and she should be ready to out for the evening; to dress nice, but comfortably. Then he had gone home, spent Friday night alone in his apartment thinking up ideas, and most of Saturday trying not to fret too much.

He spent way too long in the bathroom and deciding what to wear for a casual date with a girl he'd known for three years. Not that it stopped him from debating between four shirts, two different pairs of pants, and three different ways of parting his hair, which he had grown out a little longer than he usually kept it for the role.

He finally decided on light tan slacks and a plum colored polo shirt. He gave up on the part, ran his hands through his hair a couple of times with a little mouse, and decided that purposefully rumpled was the best he was going to get. Besides, it was a little windy outside. It probably wouldn't matter by the time they got to the restaurant.  
 _  
Don't blow this._ Ian took a deep breath and knocked on Bonnie's door.

It was only a few seconds before she opened it, and smiled at him. It wasn't a coy smile, or a shy one; just Bonnie, smiling, as she had always smiled at him—when she wasn't annoyed or furious with him. She looked eye-catching in a simple forget-me-not blue knee-length dress. Of course, Ian had the feeling she would look amazing in a potato sack. Her auburn hair, which he normally saw up, was down. It had gotten longer, he realized, falling well past her shoulders. She had gathered the longest part of the front back behind her head with a decorative comb, so it stayed out of her face, leaving just the shorter portion of her bangs in the front.

"You're on time."

"I never miss a cue," Ian smiled, offering her his arm, "and you look great. Ready for dinner?"

"I'm here aren't I?" she said, hesitating only a second before slipping her arm into his, "Though I might have to disagree on that cue thing. I _have_ seen you perform."

"Only during rehearsals," Ian amended, "But never during a take."

"That's true." Bonnie nodded as they made their way downstairs to the ground floor and started walking.

It was a beautiful early summer evening. Ian hadn't seen any reason to take a car. They weren't in a hurry and it made conversation easier. Besides, parking anywhere in town on a Saturday evening was a pain, and Bonnie was the only one of the two of them that owned a car. "So how's that line for Silverman's going?" Ian asked. It seemed a safe enough topic of conversation.

Bonnie's face lit up at once. "It's going great! Once I got the first selections done, Mr. Silverman wanted to see more of them."

"When are they coming out?" Ian asked. He knew it took time to make anything go from design to on the rack, especially for something as large as bulk manufacture.

"This fall." Bonnie smiled at him, then looked at the park they were passing. This time of the summer everything was in full bloom, and the riot of colors was worth enjoying. "I keep going from excited to terrified, but the advertising is already out, and Mr.—your grandfather keeps telling me that everything's going fine. He's already getting people asking when they'll be in stores." Her face flushed with excitement. "I feel like he's taking such a risk, he picked so many of my designs! What if they fail?"

"They won't fail," Ian assured her, making a mental note to flip through a few magazines and take a look at the Silverman's ads. "Everyone loves your work on every show you do. If the advertisers were smart, they're playing that up and _everyone_ will want to dress like their favorite characters. So which ones did you finally go with?" Ian had seen so many designs for so many different items of clothing that he couldn't have kept them all straight if he tried. He could remember what they looked like, but that was about it.

His question sent Bonnie off on a happy chatter about every item that would be showing up under the brand name "Silverlight by Walsh." The fall line included a lot of mixable separates in complimentary—and sometimes daringly bold—colors from plum and burgundy to deep slate blues, and a bright harvest orange. For women, there were five sweater designs, four pants, nine blouses, five skirts, seven casual and work dresses, five formal gowns, four dress jackets, three winter coats, leggings, assorted decorative scarves, and three different hats. "And then, there's the men's line."

Ian had entirely forgotten about that. He smiled, amused. "Is it as extensive as the ladies?"

"Almost." Bonnie eyed him, considering. "Actually, we were wondering if you would consider doing a modeling shoot for some of the new advertising."

"Who is we?"

"Your grandfather and I," she replied as if that should have been obvious. "You look good in just about everything, and if we put you in it, every woman in Amestris will want her man to wear it."

"So you're not telling this to the _men_."

"If they think it will get them laid, will they buy it?"

"Well, of course they—" Ian stopped mid-sentence. "That's pretty clever," he agreed, chuckling. "I promise not to tell them that it doesn't work."

"What doesn't work?"

"The clothes." Ian grinned. "If they don't get me laid, why would it work for anyone else?"

That earned him a slap on the arm, but he didn't mind because Bonnie started laughing, and they were both still smiling when they arrived outside the little restaurant Ian had in mind.

"I don't think I've eaten here." Bonnie looked at it in surprise. "It's really small, isn't it?"

"Best authentic home-made Xingese you'll get anywhere outside of my cousin's house," Ian assured her. In fact, it was Ren who had first recommended the place to him several years ago. He opened the door to _The Lotus Pond_ and let Bonnie enter first.

It wasn't a large restaurant inside either; maybe twenty tables, but Ian liked it. The décor was simple, authentic items that the Kasitaru family had brought with them from eastern Xing. It wasn't crowded yet, though eventually the room would be packed with local Xingese people who had moved to Central over the past few decades since the two countries had become friends.

A petite Xingese woman about their age was at the front. Her eyes lit up with recognition. Of course, Ian had called ahead, so he knew their arrival wasn't a surprise, at least not to her parents, who were the owners of the restaurant. "Ian!" she smiled, coming over with menus. "Good evening. I heard you were coming. Where would you like to sit this evening?"

"Out back, of course, Hani," Ian smiled.

"Naturally," Hani chuckled lightly. "Please, follow me." She led them through the restaurant, and out a small back door. Ian could see Bonnie's puzzled expression out of the corner of his eye.

Out back was the reason the place was named _The Lotus Pond._ The back windows faced out onto a slate patio, and out back itself there was more seating in a courtyard, and a fish pond, full of large Xingese koi, and at this time of year the pond was half covered in lotus blossoms in a riot of colors from soft bluish-purples, to vibrant rosy pink, and pale delicate sunsets.

"Here you are," Hani led them to their table, setting menus down as Ian pulled a chair out for Bonnie, then sat down himself across from her. "What would you like to drink?"

" _Cha yen_ please," Ian asked, ordering his favorite.

"What is that?" Bonnie asked, curious.

"It's a cold tea," Hani explained, "with sugar, milk, orange blossom water, anise, and other spices. Lovely on a warm night like this evening."

"I think I'll try that, too," Bonnie nodded.

"Wonderful." Hani bowed, and left them alone.

Ian opened the menu to see what the specials might be this week. He knew most of the menu by heart; he had eaten everything on it before at least once. A page in, he realized Bonnie was looking at him funny. "Something wrong?"

"You called her honey."

"What?" It took him a moment. "Oh! No, her name is _Hani,_ " he emphasized the short a. "She's the only daughter of the Kasitarus. Her parents own the restaurant. They know my cousins. Ren introduced me to this place. It's kind of one of those well-kept secrets among the local Xingese," he grinned, hoping he was diffusing her discomfort. "Besides, she's not interested in me."

"How do you know?"

Was she trying to find trouble? Ian kept a patient smile. "Because she's married to a guy named Marro and they have two of the most adorable kids you ever saw. I'm surprised they're not here tonight, actually. They probably will be later."

Bonnie looked down at her menu, clearly a little embarrassed. "Sorry."

"Don't be." Ian set his menu down on the table. "I _do_ get a lot of girls coming up to me more these days, some of the girls are kind of crazy actually. That's part of why I thought it might be nice to come here, aside from it being my favorite restaurant. We won't be bothered here."

"How can you be sure?" Bonnie asked, though she sounded curious more than skeptical.

"Because I come here often enough they've almost named their extra-large plate after me." He wasn't entirely joking. Mr. Kasitaru had teased him about his appetite more than once. "Also, given how most of the Saturday crowd in here will be Xingese immigrants, my tall, skinny, blondness isn't what most of the girls are looking for."

"Lucky me." Bonnie smiled then and relaxed. "So, what do you recommend?"

"Everything," Ian replied with all seriousness, "But on a warm evening like tonight, I'd recommend the sushi."

After that, Ian felt that dinner could not have gone much better. Bonnie loved the tea, and the food Ian suggested, though she teased him about how much of it he consumed, which was fair, given he ate about three times what she did. Ian didn't complain; it was just nice to hear her tease him again.

Afterwards, they walked home, taking a slightly meandering route that took them through one of the larger parks, where they paused to listen to a band that was playing a summer night concert. Ian didn't say anything when Bonnie didn't flinch at his arm, very loosely around her shoulders.

They walked the rest of the way back to her apartment building like that. When they got upstairs, she smiled and squeezed his hand. "Thanks for a great time, Ian."

"Thank _you._ I…ah, don't suppose you'd give me permission to kiss you good night?" A small request, but he couldn't resist asking. "In a respectful, appropriate fashion of course," he added quickly.

Bonnie was still smiling. "I suppose that would be all right."

Ian leaned in, and they shared a soft, short kiss. He decided not to press his luck, breaking it off at what felt like a natural moment. "Have a good night."

"You too."


	11. Chapter 11

**July 2** **nd** **, 1985**

Alyse could not have created a more perfect day if she tried; and she had done so for many people many, many times. The bright sun could not beat down through the brim of the hat she wore as she sat astride the sweetest palomino mare she had ever ridden, following behind the bay on which Cal sat as they followed their guide up the mountain path towards the ruins of the ancient temple of Vachu.

To their right were the jungles and waterfalls of southern Aerugo. A little to their left, the cliffs dropped down to the ocean below. Alyse was glad their horses knew the way. They were calm as could be, and she knew the trail was wider than it looked from horseback.

So Alyse was able to relax and enjoy the view; the colorful foliage, the rainbows glimmering in front of cascading water, and the shape of her husband's back when she looked forward up the trail.

He had put so much thought and detail into making their vacation absolutely perfect. So far, Alyse had to admit she didn't have a single complaint. The arrangements had been fabulous. Every hotel, restaurant, and show had been worth it. He had even spent an entire day waiting patiently while she shopped the finest stores in Buéaire, and offering real opinions when she asked what he thought of the clothes she tried on. He hadn't blinked once at any of the prices either. In fact, he had urged her to buy the things she wanted most. Price was no object.

If she hadn't known how much money he made, she might have felt worse about it, but Alyse preferred to take Cal at his word, and she wasn't one to quibble much if he felt like indulging her. Normally, she was much more frugal anyway.

This wasn't about frugality. Even with Gloria's plans for college, and keeping money saved up for whatever Charlie decided he wanted to do, they were far from poor at this point in their lives. Alyse had decided to just go with it, and she was glad she had. It was amazingly freeing not to be the planner for once. A whirlwind, romantic vacation was just what they had both needed.

The relaxed set of Cal's silhouette in front of her made that plain enough; that, and the enthusiastic, passionate nights in their hotel rooms and the little cottage; especially the cottage, when no one could hear them. Alyse had to admit, if just to herself, that she had missed the abandon and unselfconsciousness of the days before Gloria and Charlie had been born, and then been old enough to be potentially disturbed by what they might walk in on. Especially Charlie, who had been the expert at toddling in at the worst possible moments.

 _Something to look forward to when the kids move out._ She felt a little guilty thinking it, but she also knew she needed to get used to the idea that in a few short years, hopefully, her children would be self-sufficient and out on their own. Then it would just be her and Cal again… and the cat.

"Here we are!" the tour guide bellowed up ahead of them, and a few steps later, the ground leveled out onto a huge open space along the cliff's edge, and a large stepped-pyramid shaped building appeared in front of them, looming it's dark-stoned visage high into the sky.

Cal reined his horse back to ride beside her. "Isn't it something?"

"It's breathtaking," Alyse agreed as the horses followed the trail guide towards the base of the ancient structure. There were several other people on the tour, riding in front of and behind them, but the horses knew where to go, filing right up to the entrance to a wooden corral off to one side, with water buckets.

"It is." Cal smiled as they came to a stop. He dismounted. "And we're going to climb it!"

He had said that before, but Alyse hadn't seen it then. Looking up now, it was more daunting than it had looked in the brochure, even though she had worn comfortable tennis shoes. "Are you sure?" she asked as Cal reached up and helped her down.

"We'll be fine," he promised, kissing her briefly before his hands let go of her waist. "It's perfectly safe. People do it all the time, and the view from the top is supposed to be spectacular. I brought the camera."

He wasn't quite begging, but she could see the excitement lighting up his eyes. "Okay, okay." She took his arm. "But if my legs give out, you're carrying me back to the cottage!"

Her legs did not give out, though by halfway up, Alyse thought her sides might. The stairs were steep, and while she considered herself in good shape, they had already ridden up the cliffs to get there. Thankfully, the rocks were in better condition than they looked, and the footing was solid. Still, Alyse kept a strong grip on Cal's hand as he led the way up.

Part-way to the top, they paused to sit and have a drink of water. "Wow." Alyse pulled out a handkerchief and dabbed the sweat on her face and neck. She took a long, slow sip of water. "How are you not exhausted?" she looked at her husband, almost accusingly.

Cal chuckled and drank from his own water bottle. "Who says I'm not?"

"You don't look like it."

"Maybe I've just been taking acting lessons… _or_ stealing time at work to help out with some of the combat classes," Cal admitted. He capped his water and stood, offering her his hand. "Ready for the last push? We're almost there."

Alyse nodded, took a last drink, and let him help her to her feet. She was not going to be outdone. "I can make it with you."

"And I'm never going to let you go."

* * *

The view from top of the temple was everything Cal had hoped. He had been a little worried when Alyse tired more quickly than he had expected but then, neither of them was as young as they used to be, and it had been quite a haul.

Her energy seemed revitalized by the view, and Cal found the camera wandering back to Alyse as much as he took pictures of the landscape. His wife, standing on the top of the rocks, one hand holding her white sunhat on her head as the wind whipped through, rippling her shirt, and her layered hair, a smile of pure joy on her face.

Then she spotted him, and he kept taking pictures as she frowned, laughed, and turned away, pretending to ignore the camera. "Shouldn't you be taking pictures of the scenery?"

"I've got plenty of the scenery," he assured her as he put the lens cap back on joined her nearer the edge. He slid his arms around her waist as he stood behind her. "I can never have too many pictures of you, or your hugs, or kisses…" his voice dropped lower as he nuzzled her neck.

"Calvin…"

"Yeah, I know. I'm bad and _you_ like it. Admit it."

"And if I don't?"

"It's a long walk back, cutie."

Alyse turned in his arms. "You wouldn't leave me up here."

"You're right, as usual." Cal pressed her closer as he leaned in until their foreheads touched. "I couldn't live without you."

 **July 7** **th** **, 1985**

"That might be the best thing I've ever eaten," Urey told Raina in all honesty, as they cleared the plates from her little dining table after dinner. She had made the most amazing blueberry-raspberry pie he'd ever tasted.

"Well I hope so," Raina chuckled. "You ate three slices."

"Just showing my appreciation," he assured her, grinning broadly. "If you enter that in the Harvest Festival pie contest, it'll probably win."

"The berries freeze well enough," Raina nodded, looking like she was seriously considering the possibility. "But doesn't your mother or grandmother normally win?"

"So maybe they need some stiff competition," Urey pointed out as he turned on the water in the sink and picked up a sponge to start on the dishes.

"I like a little competition." Raina pulled out her storage containers and started putting away the leftovers.

Urey couldn't help watching her as she stretched to reach what she needed out of the cabinets. In his opinion, she looked good doing just about anything. "Then I'll definitely have to see if I can get on the judging panel."

"Wouldn't you be biased?"

"Towards whom?" Urey chuckled. "You, Mom, or Granny?"

"I guess that depends on whose approval you want to keep," she replied with a coy little smile.

Bright light flickered outside the kitchen window, accompanied by a thundering rumble. Urey looked up from the dishes just as sheets of rain dropped from the rapidly darkening sky.

Raina joined him at the window. "Well you're not walking home in that."

"I'm not in a hurry to go anywhere," Urey assured her. "All we usually do in the evenings at home is read books or watch movies."

"Sounds like a great night to me." Raina kissed his cheek. "We can do that here. The television guide says that _Footprints in the Sand_ is supposed to be on tonight."

Urey had heard of that one. It was at least twenty years old, but one of his mother's favorite romances. "I'd like that," he agreed. Where better place to be on a rainy night than his girlfriend's couch watching something practically designed for cuddling?

An hour later, that was exactly what they were doing, sipping leisurely from glasses of a red wine that Raina had been saving "for a rainy day" and watching the romantic leads singing about love. Urey had forgotten it was a musical, like so many of the romantic and comedic films of that day. Raina had a large, over-stuffed, very comfortable blue couch, and Urey was quite content to lean back, one arm around her shoulders as she snuggled against his side, alternately laughing and tearing up at various points in the movie.  
The storm was still crashing and wailing outside, a typical summer country thunderstorm. So they watched the next film that was on, which turned out to be a more serious historical romantic drama, taking place back during the near extermination of Ishval. With some people, Urey might have been embarrassed at the lump that spent half of the movie lodged in his throat, but Raina sniffled and dabbed her eyes, openly emotional, and when she caught him looking teary-eyed, she smiled.

Despite the drama, Urey found himself starting to dose as the end credits started rolling. It was getting late, but the storm looked like it was going to be one of those all-nighters. "Oh! This one's really good!" Raina gasped as the next film came up on the screen _Frozen._ Urey remembered this one as well. It was another romantic drama—they seemed to be a theme tonight—taking place this time during the war with Drachma. He also remembered it was almost three hours long. "Don't you love this movie?" Raina snuggled even closer to him, her arm wrapping around his chest.

As if he was going to move. "Sure," Urey replied, stifling a yawn. It _was_ a good movie. He just wasn't sure how far through it he was going to make.

As it turned out, he made it to the first battle scene before he fell asleep, because the next thing he knew, the credits were ending, and the clock on the wall said it was nearly one in the morning.

One! Urey started to sit up, but was stopped by Raina, who was still draped across him, blinking slowly as if he had woken her. "Sorry," he murmured softly.

Raina smiled up at him, but didn't move. "For what? You make a fantastic pillow."

From anyone else, he might have taken that as an insult. "It's after midnight," he said. "I should probably get home."

"It's still raining," Raina objected, sitting up and stretching. Urey felt a twinge of regret as she left his side. "You'll get soaked."

"It's that or have people wondering why I didn't come home until morning." Urey could just imagine what his family would think. Especially Grandpa Ed, whose mind was almost as dirty as Ian's. He was more worried about all the people who lived around her place who were likely to see him on his walk home. "Think of what they'll say."

"Like what?" Raina asked, giving him a smile that said she knew quite well what he was thinking.

"They'll think that we…" Urey cut off. "It's still a small town. People assume things."

Raina leaned back over and kissed him. "So… let them."

Urey lingered over the kiss. "You're a teacher. Won't it hurt your reputation?"

"I'm a woman… and I'm allowed to have a life." She looked amused at his concern for propriety. "And, like you said, it's a small town. It's not like anyone who matters doesn't already know we're dating. If they're going to assume anyway, why don't we give them something to talk about?" Her hands slid up around his neck.

Urey's eyes widened and his eyebrows vanished up into his hair. "You want to?"

"Would I be suggesting it otherwise?" she asked with a much more matter-of-fact tone.

"Well, no." Urey just hadn't been expecting her to make the first move, or one this early in their relationship.

"If it makes you uncomfortable, we don't have to," she continued, looking a little less sure.

"I didn't say I don't _want_ to," Urey almost stumbled over the words getting them out. He didn't want to leave that impression either! "It's just a surprise. I figured you'd want to—"

"—wait?" She finished his sentence. "As much as I love you, and I think you feel the same, why should we?"

"Well, we're not-"

"Married? It's a little early for proposals."

"And you're not—"

"Concerned? No." She leaned back a little but didn't let go of his neck.

Urey found himself following into a sitting position. "So you're sure you-"

"Want to. Oh, yes…" Raina's hands slid down his arms and clasped his hands, pulling him up with her. Her eyes were bright points in the dim room, lit only by the television screen and the occasional flickers of lighting outside.

He followed, his unwillingness to say no warring with the part of him that staunchly tried to argue for common sense—that felt a lot less like common sense than it used to. Still, he hesitated as she paused in the doorway to her bedroom. "Isn't this your—"

"—first time?" She smiled. "Don't worry. I'm a big girl. I can handle myself."

He swallowed, but let himself be led. "I don't have any—"

"I've got that covered."

* * *

Urey had never been _seduced_ before, he thought much later, as he lay in Raina's bed, with her once more snuggled up in her favorite spot along his right side. His right arm draped loosely around her shoulders. After getting past the initial shock, he had found he enjoyed being with her too much to worry about the opinion of anyone who wasn't in that bedroom. His heartbeat and breathing slowly returned to normal, and he found himself once more fighting drowsiness, though this time for an entirely different reason.

Raina gave a small sigh of contentment. "Thank you."

Urey chuckled. "I feel like I should be thanking _you._ " He had forgotten how good it felt to be intimate with someone he loved. Still, this had been very different from sex with Cayla.

"You seemed surprised," Raina said in her usual straightforward manner.

"It was more… _energetic_ than I was expecting," Urey admitted, though he wasn't sure he wanted to elaborate. Comparing lovers with each other was, to his knowledge, usually a bad idea.

"You can talk about her," Raina's voice was softer.

Urey looked her in the eyes. "Are you sure?"

"Cayla was your wife, and she was Yurian's mother. She's part of what made you who you are now. I don't want you to forget about her because of me."

Urey was floored. "I love you."

Raina's face, still flush from earlier, reddened a little more. "I love you, too. Now, tell me why you look just as surprised as I feel. You're the experienced one."

He had never looked at himself that way. Well, she'd asked. "Cayla was always so delicate; I had to be careful not to hurt her. Things were more subdued, gentler. _This_ was a lot more… robust."

Raina smiled. "Well I liked it. You don't have to worry about hurting me, I'm anything but delicate."

"You're gorgeous," Urey insisted, bringing his free hand up and caressing the curve of her jaw. Physically, outside of being beautiful. Cayla and Raina were very little alike. Sure, they were both blonds, but Raina's hair was a deeper, more vibrant color. Where Cayla had always been slender, and had minimal curves, Raina was solid and a little fuller of form. He would _never_ have called her too heavy, but she was healthy and resilient. There were little signs that told him that her story about losing weight before was true.

Somehow, they made him feel better about his own physicality.

Raina's eyes were bright. Slowly, she ran her fingers down his side. "I'd been wondering what you looked like under those clothes," she admitted.

It was Urey's turn to blush. He felt his ears turning warm. "Do I pass inspection?" he asked, trying to keep his tone light.

"With flying colors," Raina's right hand slid up and across his torso. "We may have to include this as a date night activity more often."

Urey felt a little thrill run through him, despite his exhaustion. "And who am I to argue with the teacher?"

* * *

Edward was almost finished with his second cup of morning coffee over the morning news broadcast when he heard the front door open. He waited until he heard footsteps go into the kitchen, a cabinet click, coffee pouring, and then the footsteps coming back into the room behind him before he spoke. "So, he finally returns."

Urey paused a moment, and then Ed heard his footsteps coming closer, until Urey was standing behind the couch on which Ed was sitting. "I was waiting out the storm."

Ed nodded, without looking up from the television. "Did I _ask_ for an explanation? Or do I hear the voice of a guilty conscience?"

Urey sipped his coffee. "No and no."

"Good." As long as Urey was comfortable with whatever had or hadn't happened last night, it wasn't really any of his business. "Got any plans for the day?" He had missed joining Ed for a morning run by over an hour.

"Actually, I asked Dad if I could borrow the car. We're going to spend the day at the zoo over in Pashool."

"We?"

"Yurian and I, and Raina."

Ed smiled. "I see. You have a good time."

"We will." A minute later, he heard Urey's feet as his grandson went upstairs. There was a little more bounce in those steps.


	12. Chapter 12

**August 27** **th** **, 1985**

It had been a long time since Urey had done arts and crafts, so it was with some bemusement that he found himself helping Raina prepare classroom decorations for her kindergarten room on a Saturday afternoon. He sat in her living room, which was scattered with boxes, bins, classroom supplies, and all sorts of paper, paints, glue, markers, and glitter.

Due to his handwriting skills, Urey had been relegated to writing student's names on colorful paper cut-outs of sheep and cows that would label their desks and their cubbies so they knew where to put their things. This was after spending most of the morning cutting out said animals using a stencil.

Urey didn't mind being assigned the task. In fact, he was enjoying it. Raina had to do all the complex work, the least he could do was time-consuming manual labor.

Yurian was with them, and had been given the task of sorting the bins of craft supplies back into a semblance of order. This, Urey discovered, was something at which his six-year-old excelled. Given a pile of supplies, and the bins he knew they had belonged in last year at school, he was quickly working his way through sorting them not only by items—markers, crayons, glue, tape—but the markers and crayons went into smaller bins of individual colors.

Add in a snack of milk and fresh chocolate chip cookies, and some jazzy instrumentals on the radio, and it was a perfect afternoon.

"I'm impressed that you do this every year," Urey commented as he finished lettering the name _Jack_ onto an orange cow.

Raina looked up from her inventory list, and smiled. "It's a lot easier with help. I can't thank you boys enough."

"It's fun!" Yurian explained. "Everything will be all ready for the little kids."

Urey tried not to laugh at his son calling children only a year younger than him little kids. "Yes, and I'm sure they'll be grateful when they can find the yellow crayon."

"Blue," Yurian corrected him. "Blue is the most popular."

"Which explains why I need to get more," Raina chuckled as she looked at the colored boxes. Blue was only half as full as the others. She ruffled Yurian's hair and gave him a squeeze. "It's looking good!"

Yurian giggled and jumped up, hugging Raina.

Urey felt his heart turn to mush at the sight of them, even as he felt the familiar twinge of guilt that his son was so attached to someone who wasn't even family. _Yet_ , the thought stirred in his mind. Sitting here like this, on a quiet Saturday afternoon, it was easy to see what a future might be like with all of them as a family. Raina clearly adored his son, and would be just as a good a mother to him as Cayla ever could have been. Possibly better, if Urey was honest with himself. Raina could keep up with the very active, chatty, intelligent little boy. She also didn't belittle _him_ as he tried to work out parenting and develop a relationship with Yurian that was more than the vague interactions they'd had for the past several years.

Yurian went back to sorting, and Urey turned back to lettering the next name, _Jocelyn_ , onto a purple sheep.

Nothing over the summer had made him doubt their compatibility. Raina was a little younger than he was, but only by six years. They had so many of the same interests and were very much intellectual equals, but different enough he never got bored.

More notably, it was _easier_. He didn't feel like he had to change for her, or protect her. Not that he wouldn't in a heartbeat, but the fears and concerns that had gripped him throughout his relationship with Cayla—especially near the end—weren't there. He had always thought he would be unable to move on without feeling like he was somehow betraying her, but it had only recently occurred to him that this was what she would have wanted; Urey and Yurian to be a family, not alone, not broken.

He just didn't want to rush things. He and Cayla had rushed into their marriage—he knew that now—and into having a family, and in the end, it had destroyed the life they had hoped to build. Urey didn't want to make that mistake twice. That didn't keep him from thinking—theoretically—of just how he would ask her to marry him.

"Urey?"

"Hmm. What?"

Raina smiled softly. "You're looking at me funny."

"Am I?" Urey chuckled, then reached across the space between them on the couch and squeezed her hand. "Maybe I just can't keep my eyes off you."

"I appreciate that." She leaned over and kissed him, briefly. "But if you don't watch what you're writing, you'll misspell someone's name. I won't have misspellings in my classroom."

Urey chuckled and looked back down at his work. "Yes ma'am."

 **August 28** **th** **, 1985**

James wasn't sure how he was going to act normal all evening. He'd been trying to set up the perfect evening all summer, but it never seemed to pan out. Either the restaurant was full, or Krista was busy with job applications. He still wasn't sure how the time had slipped away from him, but they had been going out for seven years. _Seven._ There was no doubt in his mind that they belong together, but somehow the right time to propose had never presented itself. He was sure Krista knew that he loved her, and they had talked about getting married, but he still felt like he should ask, formally.

She didn't have parents to get permission from, but James had gone and spoken to Tore and Charisa about it since they had been her foster parents and she was still very close to them. He had expected no opposition, and received none.

After that had come the scheduling nightmare and several complex cases across his desk at HQ that had him working all sorts of long hours. Ironically, at least so he felt, this summer had been the least amount of time he and Krista had spent together since she graduated from college three years ago. Since then, Krista had worked for a year in a daycare, and then she had been working as a teaching assistant in a pre-school on the other side of town and finishing her post-graduation certifications and gaining teaching experience. Since early last spring she had been applying for jobs as a teacher in her own right.

James had just gotten home to his little apartment in the barracks when the phone rang; Krista, saying she had some news and would be over at his place in half an hour.  
James didn't know if it was good news or bad news from her tone, so he aired on the side of caution and showered, shaved, and prepared to take her out for what might be a celebratory or consolatory dinner. He also stuck the ring box from the jewelers in his pocket just in case. Then he called _La Milane_ and, for once, was able to get a reservation.

Krista arrived on his doorstep right on time, and looking excited. "They called me," she blurted out.

"They who?" She had several job applications out that James knew about.

"Primrose Academy!" Krista was almost bouncing as she came through his door. "They called about my job application."

" _And?"_ James asked impatiently, though he was smiling. She was adorable when she was excited. He was betting on good news.

"I've got a job!" Krista spread her arms wide with excitement as she beamed at him. "They had hired someone for the counselor job I applied for, but then their long-time preschool teacher decided to retire, and they called me first!"

"That's fantastic!" James caught her up in a fierce hug that quickly became a long, passionate kiss. "I'm so proud of you."

"It's been a long time coming," she agreed, squeezing him tighter. "I just wanted to tell you in person. School starts in just a few days! I'm going to be so busy."

"Not too busy for me, I hope," James grinned.

"Never," she promised. "Though I can't promise there won't be nights where I'm going a little crazy."

"Teachers are like that." James had made it through Krista's college years, when she barely had time for anything except her studies. He could handle this. "Let me take you out to dinner to celebrate."

"Sure. Where should we go?"

" _La Milane._ "

Krista's eyes widened. "Don't they require a reservation?"

"We have one." James grinned as he reached for his keys. "I guessed your news would be good, so I already called."

"I'm impressed with your intuition, _investigator_." Krista chuckled as she took his arm. "I hope the food is as good as they say."

"It's from the Cretan wine country, so I can't imagine it's bad," James replied, leading her out the door, which he locked behind him. "My father has occasionally held dinner meetings there with assemblymen, like some Presidents before him." He knew that Rehnquist and Breda had used it. He didn't think it had been open as far back as President Mustang. "So, tell me about the new job."

That one line kept the conversation going all the way to the restaurant, to their table, through ordering drinks and food, and half-way through the appetizer. By the time their food arrived, James knew as much as it was possible to know about what Krista would be doing this year. The best part, she had insisted more than once, was that this particular Academy was the one that the youngest children in the foster care system, particularly those in the orphanages, went to for schooling.

James enjoyed listening to her go on and on about it, clearly excited, her eyes vibrant with joy. She barely slowed down when they brought dinner. James had spared no expense, and while he had ordered the steak and lobster, Krista had ordered a creamy seafood soup. Though they shared bites across the table, and both went wonderfully with the recommended wine.

Finally, while they were waiting for dessert, there came a natural lull in the conversation, and while James wasn't sure if she had finally talked herself out of things to mention, or if she was pausing to breathe, it seemed the best time he was ever going to get.

"I was thinking," he said casually as he set down his wine glass. "Given we both make decent money, maybe we should look into getting a place together. I'm really not attached to my neighbors in the barracks, and it's pretty small."

"Move in?" Krista asked curiously, and he wished he knew what was playing through her mind. "I don't think there's room in my place for us both, though we'd see each other more often."

"My thoughts exactly." James reached into his pocket. "Which is why I've been looking at places big enough for two." Or three… possibly. He pulled out the folded rental papers out of the newspaper, in which he had tucked the ring box. "Let me know what you think."

Now looking thoroughly puzzled, Krista took the paper, and unfolded it. Almost at once, the ring box slipped into her hand. Her eyes widened, then suddenly darted from the box to him, to the box again, then back up at him, and her mouth formed a small, silent 'o.' When James nodded, she opened the box.

He had spent forever picking out a ring. He hadn't wanted something stereotypical. His girl was too special—and definitely too unique—for that. The centerpiece of the silver ring, was a series of five Cretan sapphires, the largest in the center, and they got smaller, curving out down the band in both directions. These were surrounded by tiny diamonds.

"We've been together a long time." James reached out and put his hands around hers and the box. "Long enough, that I should have gone ahead and asked you this years ago. Will you marry me?"

If he could have kept a picture of her expression then, he would have. Krista's expressive face flickered from surprise to elation in moments. Then she nodded. "Nothing could make me happier."

"Not even this job offer?" he teased gently as he took the ring and slid it onto her finger.

"The job is a close second," Krista acknowledged as she admired the ring. "I don't know when we'll have the wedding though. There's not time before the school year starts, and with all the planning…" she looked up at him. "Do we have to do a big wedding?"

"Not if you don't want to." All James cared about was that they were together. "We could do something small now, just the legalities even, if you wanted, and just let our family throw a party. They're good at those."

"They wouldn't be hurt, do you think?" Krista looked a little doubtful.

"Not as long as we don't elope," James chuckled. "If there's one thing I can say with certainty, it's that they care most about what will make you and I happy. I really don't mind not having a big ceremony and all of the planning and politics involved."

"I'm glad." Krista relaxed. "I've never really been able to envision a huge wedding with me at the center of it."

James gave her hand another squeeze. "Having you at the center of my world is enough."

 **September 1** **st** **, 1985**

Roy had forgotten just how crazy the beginning of school was, and this year it was even more so, since Trisha was finally coming back to work. Their first morning with the new routine was more than a little nuts, with Rosa and Gabriel running around getting ready for school, he and Trisha both trying to use the bathroom to get ready, and baby Sara demanding everyone's attention, particularly Trisha's. She was almost six months old now and, thankfully, taking well to the bottle and basic solids.

That didn't mean she was ready for this new routine, and she was making it very well known by not wanting to be set down, not wanting to cooperate with her breakfast, and crying anytime Trisha stepped out of the room. Which, given they had to get ready, meant a lot of crying.

"I really hope she gets used to this new routine quickly," he commented as he helped make the kids' lunches.

Trisha looked more harried than he had seen her in years. "She'd better. I don't think I can stand it if she cries all day while I'm gone."

"Grandma can handle it," Roy assured her with a kiss on the cheek. His Grandma Riza had offered to be their babysitter during the day. "She's used to yelling."

That got a brief, tight-lipped smile from his wife, and Roy immediately felt bad. He knew that Trisha was having a harder time with their littlest growing up than the first two. Maybe because they knew this was their last. After a more challenging pregnancy, a difficult labor, and the last few months, however, Roy was glad he had gone ahead and gotten the alchemical procedure to make sure he didn't get her pregnant again. For a few weeks, he had almost expected her to tell him she wanted to retire and stay home with the kids.

He was rather grateful she hadn't, however. She was still Trisha, and she loved her work too. She would have gone stir-crazy home forever, and taken her with him.

As soon as Riza arrived, the chaos seemed to magically dissolve. "That's enough of that now," she said in a firm, but reassuring tone as she scooped little Sara out of her play yard and into her arms. "If you don't settle down we won't get to play today." Then she pulled out a small stuffed puppy from her pocket, and Sara was mesmerized by the stuffed animal and her great-grandmother.

"Let's go," Rosa suggested softly.

"Yeah, before she goes off again," Gabriel commented.

Roy stifled a laugh. It sounded how he'd felt a few times when his sisters were younger. He and Trisha and the other two kids got into the car, and left. It only took a few minutes to drive over to the elementary school and drop off the older two with kisses, hugs, and promises to hear all about their first day back over dinner.

Then the car was suddenly very quiet.

"Wow," Roy grinned as he drove towards headquarters. "I can't remember the last time it was just you and me."

"That would be the day Sara was conceived."

"Fair enough," he nodded, but when he glanced sideways he noticed Trisha wasn't smiling. "What's wrong, Trish? I thought you were looking forward to getting back to work."

"I am, but that doesn't make this easy, and the fact that it's so hard makes me wonder what's happened." She shrugged, and sighed. "I love work, and I'm looking forward to this swap over to the training program. It's practically a family tradition. Grandpa Ed and Uncle Al built it. Mom was in charge for years. It's an honor to have this position and the chances for advancement. I've never felt so torn between work and the kids before."

Roy wished he could give her a hug, but he didn't want to crash the car. He settled for lowering one hand and patting her leg. "You know how many times I've been jealous that you got to spend so much time with the kids while they were small?" he asked with a smile. "It's amazing to me your dedication to both, and I don't know how you do it. It's like you manage to do twice as much as me with the same amount of time. I think… it's just different this time, in a lot of ways. I just want to be sure you know, I'm really proud of you, and I love you."

He felt her hand on his. "Thank you, Roy." He caught a smile in the corner of a mirror. "I needed that today."

 **September 4** **th** **, 1985**

Ian was finding it difficult not to turn every time they got together into something too special, but that didn't mean he didn't give in to those urges from time to time, especially not if they had officially declared something "date night." Those differed from normal hanging out only in that official dates involved a nicer level of dress code and doing something typically considered more romantic. Otherwise they were slowly returning to their more regular routine of hanging out and enjoying themselves as they had for the past couple of years, much to Ian's relief.

Tonight was a casual hangout evening at his place. Ian had arrived back from the set first and picked up take-out Xingese on the way. By the time the food was laid out, Bonnie was at his door, looking bedraggled.

"Everything okay?" Ian asked as he set out glasses with ice for drinks.

"If it wasn't illegal I would strangle her," Bonnie replied through clenched teeth as she hung her purse over the back of a chair and reached for a fried dumpling, which she dunked forcefully into the tangy sauce.

Ian didn't have to ask who _she_ was. "What did Angie do today?" he asked sympathetically. He was grateful she wasn't on the film with him, but lately Bonnie had been dealing with her almost nonstop.

" _Nothing_ I make is right for her. There always has to be something for me to adjust." Bonnie waved her dumpling in the air emphatically before taking a bite.

Ian wiped a drop of sauce from his cheek. "She's just trying to get back at you for being more desirable than she is." He grinned.

"You think this is funny, don't you?" Her irritated glare turned on him.

"No, no, not at all," he assured her, palms up and open. "She's been a bitch to me, too." He was just glad the rumors about anything between them had died quickly. "I'm sorry she gave you another rough day."

Bonnie picked up her plate—pre-loaded by Ian with her favorites—and went over to sit on his couch. "I'm tempted to start taking in her costumes and making her think she's getting fat."

Ian finished loading his own plate and went to join her. "Devious. I like it." Too bad Bonnie was too professional to go through with it. "At least her next role has her filming in West City for four months. You won't have to deal with her then."

"Thank goodness." Bonnie picked up her chopsticks and started eating. For several minutes, they chewed in companionable silence. "Speaking of filming, when are you done on the film?"

Ian swallowed his spicy beef. "We're wrapping up filming in early October. I was planning to go visit my family for a couple of weeks. The Harvest Festival in Resembool is fantastic." He paused before deciding it was worth bringing it up now. "I thought, maybe you'd like to come with me, just to get away from the crazy divas and relax."

"MmmHmm." Bonnie ate another piece of walnut shrimp before elaborating. "This has nothing to do with introducing me to your parents?"

"I've met _yours_ ," Ian pointed out. "Believe it or not, I'm not worried about my parents liking you, or you liking them. You're all very likeable people. I just thought it might be nice to have a little vacation, and I would like it more if I had you with me. I thought you might enjoy getting out into the country for a while."

He waited, trying to be patient while Bonnie sat, considering. Still, she didn't answer until he had finished most of his plate.

"Sure."

That was it? He'd take it. "Great!" Ian leaned over and kissed her cheek. "I'll make sure to let Granny and Grandpa know. They've got a spare bedroom." He didn't mention how many spare bedrooms their house had. She would see herself when she arrived at their mansion-sized farmhouse.

"They won't mind?"

"Not at all. They love visitors, and you know how big my family is. One more person isn't going to inconvenience anyone, I promise."

"If you're sure."

"I'm sure about a lot of things." Ian raised his eyebrows comically. "My parents will think you're great. I mean, you've already met most of my siblings." She had met Coran, Gail, and their boys, Ted, and Callie, who had taken up the idea of moving to Central and was currently working for Grandpa Silverman and staying at their house. In fact, the only ones she hadn't met were Reichart and Urey. "You've also met a bunch of my extended family. Don't think of it as _meeting my parents;_ just think of it as a pleasant vacation that will include the best food you've ever tasted."

"I don't know that anything can beat my Mom's cooking." Bonnie finally cracked a smile. "I guess I'll finally find out if your claims are true, or just boasting."

"I take food very seriously," Ian reminded her. "I would never exaggerate the perfect of my mother's cooking. Mostly because I don't need to."

Bonnie shook her head and grabbed one of his throw pillows, whapping him in the side. "Let's just hope your mother's cooking is better than your acting."

"Oh really?" Ian put down his food and drink on the table, and grabbed his other throw pillow. "How about we see if you reflexes are faster than your sewing speed?"

The taunts made no real sense, but neither one of them particularly cared. In seconds, it was nothing but a pillow-flinging free-for-all. By the time they were done, at least one pillow needed mending, and there was fluff scattered across the floor. Panting and laughing, they finally returned to the couch.

Bonnie snuggled up against his shoulder, turning long enough to kiss him. "Thank you."

"For clocking you with a pillow?"

"For making my day better."

Ian slid his arm around her shoulder. "Thank you for returning the favor."

 **September 8** **th** **, 1985**

"Almost packed?" Alphonse asked Elicia as he finished stuffing the last couple of things into his suitcase and snapped the lid shut. He was certain he had everything he was going to need for a few weeks in Resembool. It was almost time to leave for the station.

"I think so." Elicia was still looking at her open suitcases, mentally going through her checklist. "I just don't want to forget anything important."

"Like your head?" Al teased. "It will be fine. Anything we forget we can pick up in Resembool anyway. We've taken care of everything here. Gracia will take care of the house, and the cats, until we get back. Will and Ren will be sure to take care of Gracia," he added a little more softly. He knew that was probably more of Elicia's worry than anything else; leaving her elderly mother alone for weeks. Not that they were 'spring lambs' themselves anymore.

"I know it's silly to be concerned." Elicia closed her suitcases. "That doesn't mean I don't worry."

"She'll be all right," Al assured her. "Now let's go. Will is waiting downstairs to drive us to the station."

It only took a few minutes to load the car and get underway. It was early enough in the day that the roads were mostly empty, and the drive was pleasant; for Central traffic anyway. "Any news from Minxia lately?" Al asked conversationally as his son wove the car through the city streets. Even almost empty, late summer always seemed to be construction work season.

"Actually, we got a call last night," Will grinned. "Minx's team just got the research grant they put in for to investigate the ruins that were unearthed on the Creta/Aerugo border in the jungles a couple of months ago. You know, the ones those boys found?"

Al did indeed remember hearing about that happy find. "That's fantastic. What do they think they'll find?"

"Looks like it might be another ancient temple, though from the preliminary reports, not to one of the gods that either country currently has in their ancient pantheons."

"What does that mean, then?" Elicia asked curiously from the back seat. "That it's older than either?"

"Or that it's from a different society." Will nodded. "In either case, it's going to make great work."

"What's Thrakos doing?" Al watched out the window as they passed the Central Zoo. Exotic plants poked their heads over the large walls.

"Going with her, of course." Will chuckled as he parked the car in the train station parking lot. "He's supposed to report back to that agency he works for and the University what their findings look like and what kind of preservation and protection the site needs from the elements as much as any locals. Since it's on the border, there might be some negotiating involved with the Aerugeans. Apparently the government feels the son of the President can handle it." Will spoke of his son-in-law with almost as much pride as his daughter.

"I'm glad they're enjoying themselves," Al chuckled as he unbuckled and opened the door. "Sometimes I miss having that much energy and freedom to run off across country."

Elicia caught his eye. "Isn't that just what we're doing, Alphonse?"

"Well, yes, but I doubt our vacation will have to deal with tropical weather or dangerous wildlife."

"Not unless you consider Edward's fluffy carpet of a dog dangerous."


	13. Chapter 13

**October 2** **nd** **, 1985**

Edward couldn't help looking forward to the Harvest Festival this year. He enjoyed it every year, but this year was looking to be particularly good. First off, Alphonse and Elicia had arrived in mid-September and planned to stay for several weeks. It had been a long time since Ed and Al had been able to just enjoy some time together as brothers. He also wanted Al to take a look at his current writing project. The night after his brother's arrival, Ed and Al had stayed up half the night going through Ed's existing manuscript. Beyond that, they also talked about Al's current research, new archeological discoveries, and generally caught up on far-flung family and world events.

The closer the festival got, the more involved the entire family became in preparations for it. Outside of Aldon and Cassie, who were always heavily involved in planning such events, Ed, Winry, and Al were happy to be involved in the creation of a new stage for announcing winners and several of the contests, and repairing the animal pens and some of the pre-built stalls at the Fairgrounds for animals and vendors alike.

Building, decorating, planning competitions, practicing, and an explosion of baking always preceded the festival. Not that Ed was going to complain about any of this activity; he loved every moment of it, and being an active part of the ever-growing community. It was events like the festivals that kept Resembool feeling like the small country town it had started out. When he had been a boy, the population had been roughly a scant near-thousand people. Now it was nearly seven-thousand. Still small by most standards, especially compared to Central, but much larger than it had once been, and growing every day. The other little towns in the region were also growing, and there was more travel between them.

The people Ed was most looking forward to, however, were the various extended family members coming in. Aside from Al and Elicia, he knew that Lily and Randy were coming over their fall break. He hadn't seen the newlyweds since their marriage, and he was curious to see for himself how they were doing. He knew Ian was also coming home for a short break and—much different from his previous visit—instead of moping around about never having a chance with the girl, he was bringing Bonnie along with him.

Their house was going to be full, and it made Ed happy. It had been a few years since everyone had managed to be together at once, and he was beginning to wonder if it would actually ever be feasibly possible again, as his grandchildren grew up, got married, had families of their own, and moved all over the world.

Everything was changing, as he was reminded every time Urey wasn't home for dinner, or didn't even come home until the next morning.

Or this morning, when Ed noticed him pouring over the classifieds section of the Resembool newspaper, as well as that of several small towns nearby. "Thinking about changing careers?" Ed asked curiously as he sat down between Urey and Alphonse at the table, his plate heaped high with waffles covered in one of Elicia's specialties – maple syrup, whipped cream, and sweet chopped apples.

"If you can call milking cows a career," Urey commented wryly, sipping his morning coffee. "I was talking to Uncle Ethan on the phone and he suggested I might have some luck finding jobs in local pharmacies, or over at the hospital."

Urey's education and experience was in laboratory alchemy, but given his original intention had involved moving to Central to work in the newer, medically-focused lab making improved medicines, Ed thought those sounded like good suggestions. Certainly, Ethan would know. "That's a great idea. Anything good?"

"A couple of possibilities." Urey set down his cup. "I'm tired of working farm hours. I'd like to have more time for other things."

Ed didn't have to ask what those other things—or people—were. He'd watched Urey's renewed interest in life over the past few months. He'd even seen his grandson with his nose back in his alchemical notes. He grinned, and noticed that Al was also smiling. "There are certainly way more interesting ways to spend your time."

 **October 7** **th** **, 1985**

Urey wasn't particularly surprised that one of Yurian's favorite places to go when they had time on the weekends was the zoo. So, while the weather was good, he had borrowed his father's car and taking Yurian to the zoo. By the time Harvest Festival was over, the weather would be turning, and he didn't think they would get another chance.

Of course, he had invited Raina to come with them. It already felt natural to just include her, though he and Yurian did plenty of things just the two of them now. Slowly, he felt like he was putting his life back together, and part of that meant finding a way to support himself and Yurian. He couldn't keep living off his grandparents' generosity forever, even they would probably let him.

He had a job application in with the pharmacy attached to the hospital where his mother worked, and had his eye out for others in case it didn't' pan out. While he could have made better money moving up to Central, Urey had no intention of moving away while he and Raina were together. Her job was here, and that meant so was he.

"I never get over how big they are," Raina commented as they stood by the rail in front of the Xingese Elephant exhibit.

"I like to think of them as majestic," Urey chuckled, his arm loosely around her waist. "Big, powerful, rugged…"

"Are we talking about elephants or you?" Raina asked, smiling at him.

"Depends on which you think is cuter."

"Well, I'd much rather kiss you than an elephant, so I'm going with the second option."

Urey took the invitation. Yurian was too wrapped up in watching the elephants to notice.

Next, they headed towards the lions. Raina spoke as Yurian scampered ahead. "Urey, I have something I should tell you."

This was either good news, or bad news. Rarely had Urey's life taught him to like those words. He tried not to panic. It could be nothing. "What is it?"

"My parents are coming for Harvest Festival."

Urey stopped walking and looked at her. "Your parents."

She nodded. "They're both retired, and I've been telling them all about Resembool and the festivals. So, they decided they wanted to come this year… and meet you."

 _Of course they want to meet me._ He was the one sleeping with their daughter. "How much do your parents know about _us_?"

"Only as much as they need to know," Raina assured him. "I've told them that we're dating, and that you have a college degree and have been working at the dairy while you look for something in your field. Oh, and since Mom is really _really_ nosy I did tell her that you used to be married before, but that your wife passed away and you have an adorable well-behaved son."

At least there wouldn't be any awkward questions on that front. "What did your mother say?"

"Mom _adores_ children. She'll probably decide Yurian's her honorary grandson the moment she sees him." Raina chuckled as they reached the lions, which were lazing about on the rocks in their habitat. Yurian was watching them with rapt attention. "I think she cares more about having grandchildren than about where they come from."

Urey wasn't sure if that was meant to be a joke, but it brought up a subject he hadn't actually asked about yet. He'd just assumed up until now that, since Raina enjoyed working with children, and clearly loved spending time with Yurian, she would want children. "How do you feel about it?"

The look she gave him made him wonder if she could read his mind. "To be completely honest, I haven't really given kids a lot of thought, other than that I love them, and someday I want to be a mother. None of my other relationships were ever all that serious, and I've been working so hard getting through school and getting my career going as a teacher, that my students have been my primary focus. Don't worry," she reached out her left hand to rest it on his right on the railing. "When we have kids, we'll make those decisions together."

Urey stared at her. Had she just said what he thought she said?

Raina looked at him for several seconds, and then her face went bright red. "I…I meant to say if! It just…sort of slipped out."

She was adorable when she blushed. Urey chuckled and kissed her cheek as his heart rate slowly returned to normal. "It's all right." At least he wasn't the only one thinking about their future.

* * *

Franz found it difficult not to get emotional even though he was there as witness to what was a very simple, civil ceremony. His son and Krista had promised a large family celebration was welcome later, something fun and informal, but they had wanted to go ahead and get the nuptials out of the way, so when they found the right place to live, they could move in together. Franz was touched that they had asked him to be the sole witness to the ceremony outside of the judge who would sign the papers. He was glad they had managed to do it on a weekend. As it was he had required his poor Aide to reschedule three meetings so that he could attend, then treat the newlyweds to lunch.

James was wearing his dress uniform, and Krista one of her favorite dresses. It was a soft pale blue with tiny white polka-dots, belted with a white fabric sash. She looked lovely.

They both looked happy.

 _I wish you could see this, Belle. I hope you're watching, somehow._

After a simple, heartfelt exchange of vows and rings, and a passionate kiss, with him to witness, the papers were signed and the marriage was legal.

They left the courthouse and went downtown to one of James and Krista's favorite Cretan restaurants. Over a delicious lunch of lamb and salads, they celebrated and discussed future plans.

"So, have you found a place you like yet?" Franz asked over the first course. He had a pretty good idea they didn't, but he hadn't asked in a few days.

"Not yet," James shook his head.

"We've looked at several apartments," Krista added, "But anything in our price range is too small."

He didn't need to ask what for. "Well I may have found the perfect place," he went ahead with the idea he had been considering for some weeks. The announcement that James and Krista were finally getting married had only solidified in his mind that this was the right decision.

"Really?" Krista looked hopefully.

"What did you find, Dad?" James looked up from his salad.

Franz sipped his tea. "I thought you might like our place. The mortgage was paid off years ago, and you could more than afford the bills." It would also be easier to give up the house if he didn't feel like he was leaving Sara's memory to strangers.

They were both staring at him now, a mix of expressions on both faces. Krista looked like she was seriously considering it.

James looked skeptical. "I appreciate the offer, Dad, but what about you?"

"Oh, I wasn't going to stay and get in your way." Franz smiled. "I've been thinking of getting a smaller place for myself. I really don't need the house. It's meant for a family."

"You _are_ family." James shook his head. "I think it's a great idea, Dad. I love our house, but I don't like the idea of forcing you out of it."

"You're not." Franz shook his head. "This is something I've been thinking about for a long time. I just couldn't bring myself to sell to strangers. Now, if you don't want the house—"

"We didn't say that!" Krista exclaimed, looking from Franz to James. "I think all James means is, we'd be very happy if you continued to live there, with us. That is, if you would like that."

James nodded. "You don't have to live alone, Dad. That is… unless you weren't planning on living alone."

"What? No." Franz stabbed his salad with his fork. "I haven't been seeing anybody, and I certainly don't intend on pursuing anyone else." Certainly not while he was President. It would get political far too quickly. There wouldn't be any privacy either, if it got out that he was dating anyone.

The finality in that statement caused a quiet pause in conversation. Franz hadn't meant it to, but he let it sit. James could make of it what he would.

"All the more reason to stay," James said after a couple of minutes of quiet eating. "It wouldn't be that different from what Grandpa and Granny did when Uncle Ethan and Aunt Lia moved in with them, right? Besides, then you'd be able to spend time with grandkids whenever you want." He grinned. "When we have any, I mean."

Krista was blushing slightly, but she didn't contradict the statement, which Franz took to mean that children were certainly not far down the list after _get married_ and _get our own place._ Given they had been together for seven years and a solid, reasonably income, he could see why they would be ready to get started on a family before too much longer.

"All right," Franz conceded. As much as he still had some reservations about the idea, it wasn't a bad one. "I'll consider it, as long as you think about what that would involve, including the possibility of formal entertaining. It hasn't happened yet, but it probably will before too much longer. You might find I'm more trouble than I'm worth."

"I think we can work it out. It's not like I don't know what you're like to live with," James chided. "But yes, we'll think about it, and we can discuss details. I still think it would be a good arrangement for all of us."

 _Think I'm spending too much time by myself, don't you?_ Not that Franz could entirely deny that his son might be right. Though it was easier to hide in the house these days than try and go out by himself almost anywhere that he might be recognized. Thanks to the television, lots of complete strangers seemed to know who he was. It had also come to his attention that a certain widow down the street had a new gentleman caller. Franz held up his glass in a small salute. "To the future, and may it be a happy one."

James and Krista both smiled and raised their glasses.

 **October 8** **th** **, 1985**

Ian tried not to grin too much as Bonnie stared up at the ceiling-stories above them- of his grandparents' hilltop farmhouse.

"This…is not what I was expecting when you said farmhouse," Bonnie admitted.

Ian shrugged. "Grandpa never does anything small."

"Who are you calling _small_?" a male voice shouted from up above them.

"Granny!" Ian called back, laughing.

"Oh, that's all right then." A moment later, Grandpa Ed came out of his office, grinning down at them from the second floor. "Hi there," he smiled at Bonnie and waved at them.

"Come on up! I'll show you to your room. Welcome."

"Your house is amazing," Bonnie said as she smiled tentatively. Ian picked up both of their suitcases and led her up the stairs.

Ed met them at the second floor landing and gestured upwards. "Well I had to do something with all that money the government kept paying me. One more floor," he grinned.

"We've got you up on the third floor. One of the best views in town."

Ian just followed, letting his grandfather play host as he showed Bonnie to one of the larger upstairs guest rooms, decorated cozily in warm woods and blue-and-green plaids on the curtains and stuffed recliner. The bed had a simple soft blue comforter. There was nothing about it, besides quality, to say it wasn't inside any old farmhouse.

Bonnie looked immediately more comfortable. "It's lovely, thank you."

"I can't take credit for the décor," Ed shrugged casually. "That's Winry's doing mostly. She'll be back soon. She's in town getting groceries. Dinner's here tonight, though it's not formal given how busy everyone is getting ready for the Festival, and that's after work hours. So, why don't you two get comfortable? There are plenty of drinks and snacks in the kitchen. Ian can show you around. Anything you need, just ask."

"Who else is here for the festival?" Ian asked curiously.

"Lily and Randy are coming in from ECU," his grandfather grinned. "I put them in the corner room," he gestured around the other side of the third floor, "for noise control."  
Ian managed to keep a laugh from snorting out his nose. "Is that a concern?"

"I never take risks with newlyweds," Ed replied matter-of-factly. "I just thought that the rest of us might prefer to sleep at some point."

Ian was grateful that there was no suggestiveness aimed in his and Bonnie's direction. "I'm sure we will," he agreed with an equal lack of suggestive undertones. "I thought we might go over and I'd show you my house," Ian suggested as he looked at Bonnie to see what she thought.

"That sounds nice," Bonnie nodded, smiling. "It was nice to meet you, Mr. Elric," she said to Ed.

Ed smiled. "It's a pleasure to meet you. Please, just call me Ed. There are way too many Mr. Elrics around here for formality."

Bonnie chuckled. "All right. Thank you."

"I'll be in my study if you need me." Grandpa took his leave and went back to his work.

A few minutes later, suitcases unloaded, and Ian was leading Bonnie back out the door into the beautiful fall afternoon.

Grandpa's giant white dog, Mal, came around to the front yard as they came down the stairs.

"Oh my goodness!" Bonnie gasped, almost immediately dropping into a crouch and holding out her arms. "Aren't you the handsomest dog ever?"

"His name is Mal, short for Marshmallow."

Mal wagged his fluffy white plume of a tail and padded over, licking Bonnie's face and leaning into her for the hug he clearly expected. He was not disappointed.

Ian watched Bonnie ruffle Mal's fur and cuddle him for a couple of minutes. There was his farm girl.

Finally, Bonnie stood up. "I'm ready."

Together they walked down the hill, and up the road towards the yellow house. "So, did I exaggerate?" Ian asked.

"No, it's really lovely here," Bonnie agreed. "The colors on the trees are so vivid, and it's peaceful."

"Well, the festival won't be, but yes, it's usually this quiet around here." Ian watched the house appear as they came over the hill. "There it is."

Bonnie looked up. "Oh. That's much more what I pictured when you said _farmhouse._ "

"I thought it might be. Granny's grandmother, and her family before back generations, ran Rockbell Auto-mail out of it," Ian explained.

"They've expanded a lot." Bonnie sounded impressed.

"They have." Ian chuckled. "Granny did most of that work, taking it to Central, expanding into international markets. She's the one who got the exclusive contract for all of the military's auto-mail work out of Central. Now, with Coran and Gale running the business, Granny just gets to enjoy her favorite part, which is designing pieces for people, and being a mechanic."

"I think I'll like your grandmother."

"Granny Winry's easy to get along with," Ian agreed. It was a little strange to walk up to the house and not find the yard teeming with people. Of course, the only people living there now were his parents and Yurian, since Callie had moved to Central in August. Usually though, some of Reichart and Deanna's kids were in the yard. Ian knocked on the door, then opened it and stuck his head in without waiting. "Hello, Mom? Dad?"

A moment later he heard feet in the hallway, and his mother appeared, smiling broadly. "Ian, you're here!" She enveloped him in a hug and then turned to Bonnie and—before she could object—hugged her too. "Bonnie, it's such a pleasure to meet you! Welcome to our home! Come in, make yourself comfortable. How was your trip?"

"Good, thank you." Bonnie looked a little bemused as Cassie let her go, and went over to the kitchen.

"Tea, coffee, juice?" Cassie offered. "Something to eat?"

Ian just grinned and steered Bonnie towards the couch. It was easier to humor his mother who was clearly holding back plenty of much more personal questions she knew better than to ask. "Coffee for me, thanks."

"Tea, please." Bonnie sat down as Ian settled in next to her.

"Where is everyone?" Ian asked as his mother bustled about the kitchen.

"Well, your father is up at the fairgrounds, which is about the only place you'll find him lately except the city building until the festival's over." Kettle on to boil and the coffee pot percolating, she joined them, sitting down in a chair. "Yurian is out with Urey. He promised to help Raina with something today." She either didn't know, or didn't care to ask, what.

"How are they doing?" Ian asked, curiously. He had met Raina during his last visit, briefly, but they hadn't really talked.

"Wonderfully," his mother smiled. "It's so nice to see him smiling again, and to watch him with Yurian. A lot has changed just since your last visit."

"I'd guessed," Ian admitted. Urey had actually called him a couple of months before, and they had talked for almost an hour. It had been a long time since they just had a good brotherly chat over the phone, and he had hopes that on this visit home, he was going to find his brother much more the himself than Ian had seen in a long time. "The house seems so quiet."

"Doesn't it?" His mother nodded. "We're still getting used to it. Without all of you home, sometimes I invite people over just to fill the house."

Ian believed it.

"Is that coffee I smell?" Aldon asked as he came through the door in his grease-stained coveralls. It was clear he had been working on something down at the fair, because his face was still a little flushed too.

"It is." Cassie stood and went into the kitchen.

Aldon spotted them then, and a smile split across his face. "Well, there you are!" He chuckled, wiping his hands on a handkerchief. "It's nice to meet you," he extended his hand out to Bonnie. "Aldon Elric."

"Bonnie Walsh," Bonnie introduced herself, returning the handshake. She seemed surprised to see the mayor in grease and denim coveralls. Ian tried not to look too amused. She was from a country town; surely this wasn't too much of a surprise. Unless she was used to really formal mayors.

"Is the stage done, dear?" Cassie asked.

"Almost," Aldon answered as he sat down in the chair she had just vacated. "Mom, Ollie, and I took care of it. The folding set pieces the school teacher's wanted are done and installed. These programs get more elaborate every year," he gasped, as if exasperated, but he was grinning.

Ian knew his father enjoyed this kind of work. He had always been an engineer and builder at heart. "The school kids are doing a production?" That caught his interest. He hadn't seen a student production in quite some time.

"Yep." Aldon smiled, taking the cup of coffee Cassie handed him. "Mrs. Hargrove is still directing them too. You should go say hello while you're here."

Old Mrs. Hargrove. Ian chuckled. "I should! I haven't spoken with her in forever. She's one of the middle school teachers," he explained to Bonnie, as he realized they were throwing around names she had no way of knowing. "She also teaches all of the public speaking and dramatic performance classes for the whole district. Wow. I can't imagine how much that's grown by now."

"Well you'll see for yourself," his father said. "Almost every grade is doing something related to the festival for a competition the school put together, and then there's a full production, too."

A rush of nostalgia filled him. "Oh I'll definitely be watching. That is," he glanced at Bonnie, "if you don't mind?"

Bonnie's lips twitched with amusement. "How could I say no to that face. Besides, I'm rather curious to meet the theater teacher of such an _illustrious actor._ "

Ian resisted the urge to nudge her with his elbow. "Tease," he said instead.

"Well I _am_ interested," she said with more sincerity. "And I did all the costumes for our school plays, remember? I'd love to see what they have here."

"They're rehearsing tomorrow afternoon," Aldon said, grinning. "Why don't you both go down and have a look. I can imagine the children would love it."

"Using my fame, Dad, really?" Ian chuckled.

"Who said anything about you?" Aldon retorted. He nodded towards Bonnie. "I was talking about the professional costume designer."

Bonnie looked a little flustered, as if she couldn't decide whether to be flattered or embarrassed. Ian watched as she made the decision to go with it. "Thank you. I would love to see what they're working on. Maybe I can help."


	14. Chapter 14

**October 9** **th** **, 1985**

Urey resisted the urge to fidget as he stood on the platform at the Resembool Station, waiting with Raina for her parents. He had borrowed Grandpa Ed's beautiful sports car to help drive them to Raina's house, since Raina did not have a car, and she had said her father's knees were not great for long-distance walking.

He had debated whether or not to bring Yurian along for this, but he and Raina had decided against it mostly due to logistics and the change to start with slower introductions. Urey had agreed, mostly because he thought it might look silly if he hid behind his six-year-old son. Today, he was as much chauffeur as he was their daughter's boyfriend.

Urey had dressed casually, but in his best and cleanest jeans, and a blue-and-white plaid button-down that he had been glad to see looked presentable. It had been a couple of years since he'd been able to button it without it straining.

"It'll be fine," Raina assured him without even looking his direction. "Daddy's always telling me I need to find someone smart enough for me, and as long as you like her cooking, Mom will think you're great."

"Since you keep telling me half of your recipes are hers, I think we're fine there." Urey certainly hoped he qualified as smart enough, given her father was a retired history teacher.

In the distance, the train whistle sounded.

 _Breathe,_ he reminded himself. _You've gotten approval from a woman's parents before. You can do this._

Shortly, the train was pulling into the station. Where, in the past, there might have been only one or two people getting off, these days the number of returning family members and visitors that showed up for the festivals was a bit larger. Nearly two dozen people disembarked from the train, including his cousin Lily and her husband. They didn't see Urey as they headed straight for Grandpa Ed, who was waiting further down the line.

"There they are!"

Urey turned as Raina waved eagerly over the crowd at a distinctive couple that was moving towards them. He immediately understood what Raina meant by her father not being athletic. He was just about the same height as Urey, but nearly three times as wide. Still, he wore a brown traveling suit of good quality, such as Urey might have expected him to wear teaching in a classroom as well. His hair—what was left of it—was silver, but keen intelligence showed in the blue eyes set in his round face. So, this was Percival Summers.

Beside him was a shorter, plump woman with a pretty face and tightly curled silvering brown hair. Yet next to her husband, Magnolia Summers looked diminutive. "Wisteria!" she held out her arms, calling Raina by her first name, and enfolded her daughter in a hug. "You look wonderful! Didn't I tell you country air would agree with you?" she chattered.

"Of course, mother," Raina smiled, returning the hug with enthusiasm, before turning to her father. "Daddy!"

"There's my little Rainsong!" For a moment Urey wondered if the man's massive bear hug would enfold Raina entirely, but he heard no bones breaking.

Finally, Raina was released. Smiling, she turned their attention towards him. "Daddy, mother, this is Urey Elric. Urey, I'd like you to meet my parents, Percival and Magnolia Summers."

Urey held out his hand to Mr. Summers. "It's an honor to meet you, Sir."

Percival's sausage-like fingers enclosed around his hand in a firm grip which Urey did his best to return without seeming like he was competing. Really he just didn't want his fingers crushed! "I've been hearing a lot about you from my daughter," he commented, his sharp little eyes meeting Urey's straight on. "You're an alchemist."

"Yes, Sir." Until told otherwise, Urey was sticking with sir. "My area of specialty is medicinal pharmaceuticals." He wondered how Raina had spun the farm thing, or if she just hadn't mentioned it.

"Sounds fascinating." Percival released his hand. "I look forward to discussing your thoughts on some of these new digs in Creta." He didn't bother to ask if Urey was keeping up with such things. Urey wasn't sure if he should be flattered that the man just assumed he would know what he was talking about.

He got a much warmer handshake from Raina's mother. "Urey! Well, Wisteria told me she'd found herself a handsome one, and she wasn't exaggerating. Aren't you the looker?

Though you could use a little feeding up." She chuckled. "Aren't you feeding him, dear?"

Raina somehow didn't roll her eyes, though Urey got the feeling she wanted to. "Of course, mother."

"Well I'm sure we'll all have a lovely time this afternoon." Magnolia beamed, released Urey's hand. "I can't wait to make you both this fantastic new recipe I found for roasted mutton." And she was off, chatting at Raina as Urey turned to help Percival with the bags. He could see where Raina got her outgoing personality.

"Point me to the car," Raina's father grinned as they headed out of the station and into the parking lot.

"Right over here." Urey gestured to his Grandfather's shiny sporty little convertible. With the nice weather, he'd left the top down. Grandpa had specifically told him to pretend it wasn't borrowed. _You're starting your new pharmacy job. Pharmacists can afford a decent car. Go impress the hell out of her parents._

He saw the other man's eyes light up with approval as he saw the car. Raina was opening a back door for her mother already. "Nice wheels," Percival commented.

"Thanks." Urey opened the trunk and slid the suitcases he was carrying in. Raina's father did the same.

"You ride up front with Urey, Daddy," Raina said as they came around. "Mother and I will ride in back, so we can chat. You'll get a wonderful view of town from there."

Urey wasn't going to argue. He just smiled and nodded, and hoped that Grandpa Ed's shocks didn't go out when the car listed to the front corner as her father climbed in.  
It turned out to be a pleasant afternoon. Raina and her mother made a lunch that they all enjoyed, and they talked for a while. Urey felt he kept up well enough with her father's conversation. Thankfully much of it covered topics he and Raina had already discussed in depth over recent weeks, and things that he followed out of his own interests.

Only after Raina's mother had gone upstairs to freshen up a bit from the trip, and her father had passed out on the soda, did Urey help Raina with the dishes.

"So, how do you think it's going?" he asked her softly as he scrubbed and she dried.

"Great!" Raina smiled at him. "I think Daddy really likes you. He doesn't spend a lot of time talking to people he doesn't like, and the two of you have a lot in common."

Well, that was one parent nearly won over. "What does your mother think of me?"

"Well, other than dozens of questions of what kind of a father you'd be, which led to more questions about Yurian, who she really wants to meet, I'd say you're doing just fine with Mom. She was a little concerned that you didn't eat seconds of everything," she added with a teasing tone.

Urey tried not to groan. Trying to balance politeness without killing his diet had been a challenge. Instead he grinned and shrugged. "Well she _did_ say I looked like I needed feeding up."

Raina shook her head and kissed his cheek. "Don't take her too seriously on that."

"Why not?" he asked.

"Because, she still says that about Daddy."

* * *

Winry smiled as she listened to Lily, Randy, Ian, Bonnie, and Ed sitting around the table talking about everything from school to acting. Ed and the newlyweds had walked from the train station, since Urey had borrowed the car to help get Raina's parents to her house. Now, they were eating the lunch she had made while waiting for them to arrive, which consisted of freshly chopped and sliced sandwich fixings, and a creamy potato soup. The pot on the stove was beginning to smell like the spiced apple cider it was slowly becoming.

At the moment, the focus was on Lily and Randy and what they had been up to this year.

"So after they heard me play, they asked if I'd like to work with them regularly as a background musician," Lily was saying, looking pleased and excited.

"Congratulations!" Ian beamed. "Studio musician work is good pay."

Lily nodded. "It is, and their recording schedule works with my course load. Mostly I'll be playing Clarinet for them, but they were excited to hear me play when I told them I could also play Oboe, Flute, and Violin. It's something until I get into student teaching in a couple of years. Though I think Randy's got the more fun job," she smiled at her husband.

Randy chuckled, abashed. "Oh, maybe. There's a Jazz club downtown now and they were advertising for Saxophone players, so I auditioned. We rehearse three times a week, perform Friday and Saturday nights. It's not full time, but it's a regular paying gig."

"Can't ask for more than that starting out," Ian agreed. "Though when you finish school, if either of you are interested, the studio orchestra's usually looking for new talent.

They do the soundtracks for pretty much everything on the lot: television, film, news broadcasts, commercials, you name it."

"That's a great idea," Randy replied with enthusiasm.

"I might," Lily agreed, smiling. "Though it'll depend on if I can get a teaching job or not." Her primary goal was still on teaching music. Winry wondered if it was possible to do some of both.

"You could do both," Ian suggested. "If you wanted to anyway."

"Not everyone wants to work themselves to exhaustion like you do," Bonnie chided him.

"Just you?" Ian teased. Winry turned, and watched as he nudged Bonnie lightly in the side with an elbow.

Bonnie tried to look annoyed, but failed. "If you didn't distract me from my work, I might have more time."

"That you would spend on work."

"Sounds like our place, only it's rehearsing," Lily chuckled. "If it's not one of us, there's always someone practicing in our apartment complex. It's close to campus, and a lot of music majors live there."

"Mostly because we're all tolerant of each other's practicing." Randy chuckled before taking another bite of his roast beef sandwich.

"I hope they're all pretty good," Ed commented. "The only musicians I have to listen to at night around here are the crickets, and the occasional bullfrog." They almost never heard wolves anymore now that the town was expanding as quickly as it was.

"Oh, we've been known to engage in a few extemporaneous jam sessions." Lily sipped her tea. "It's a great little community."

"Sounds like my place," Ian commented, "Though the last couple of years, there aren't as many actors I know in the place. I've been thinking of finding something a little nicer though."

"You have?" Bonnie looked surprised. Winry guessed this was the first time Ian had mentioned this particular fact.

"Not for very long," Ian assured her, "But the building's not getting any younger, and I'd like something with a little more privacy, and a bit more appeal. I've been saving for years, sticking around there just because of the low rent. My work is steady, so why not invest in something a little nicer?"

"Sounds like you're looking at buying," Winry commented as she joined them. Most of lunch was put away.

Ian nodded. "If I can find the right place. My credit's good, it's just a matter of the right neighborhood or apartment complex, where I'm not likely to be bothered, and with minimal yardwork. It would be a jungle before the month was out."

Winry sat down next to Ed, setting her cup of tea on the table. "You certainly don't have the time for it, but won't that make getting to the studio more difficult?" She knew that one reason so many actors lived where he did now was it's convenient location. A short bus ride, or a reasonably short walk, and he was there.

"I can look for bus routes," Ian shrugged. "Though I've also been looking around for a decent used car. Public transportation is starting to get hazardous."

"The curse of fame." Ed chortled, then finished the last bite of his sandwich. "Notoriety isn't always a plus."

"Well we'll worry about it if we ever get any." Lily sat back in her chair, and yawned. "Oh, excuse me. It was a long ride."

"Trains are never comfortable," Winry nodded in understanding. "Why don't you take a nap before you join us in town?" There was still plenty of work to be done.

"That sounds good," Randy agreed. "Thank you for the food. It was delicious." He stood and offered Lily a hand.

Lily smiled at him. "It does. We'll see you in a bit."

Winry watched them go upstairs before turning back to the group still at the table. "So what are your afternoon plans?" she asked Ian and Bonnie.

"Popping in on Mrs. Hargrove's rehearsal," Ian replied with a mischievous grin. "I definitely owe her a visit, and I want to see what the kids are working on."

"Better take a pen," Winry suggested.

"Oh? I don't think I have a lot of fans in the elementary schools," Ian pointed out, chuckling.

"No," Winry smiled back, "But a lot of their older sisters and mothers would probably love an autograph."

"So much for being just another local boy." Ian looked disappointed, but it lasted only a moment. "Oh well, at least I know Mrs. Hargrove won't want my autograph. Ready to go?" he asked Bonnie, who had finished eating a while ago.

"If you are." Bonnie set down her napkin and stood. "I'm not the one who's likely to have fans here."

"No, but you might spark a few teenage crushes." Ian stood, kissing her on the cheek.

Bonnie's eyes widened, then she shook her head. "Let's go."

When they were gone, Ed smiled at her. "Were we ever this bad?"

"Are you referring to the newlyweds who can't keep their eyes or hands off each other or the couple who flirts without even trying?" Winry asked as she reached out and gave his hand a squeeze.

"Okay, so we were always that bad." Ed leaned in and kissed her.

Winry melted, relishing the warmth between them. "You know," she said after their lips parted, "This isn't going to get you out of helping set up the lattices for the arts and crafts displays in the craft barn." Alphonse and Elicia had been down there all day.

"I can kiss you all afternoon."

"Not if we don't get those lattices put up."

Ed rolled his eyes, but he was smiling. "All right, all right. Let's go. You know, I remember when these festivals used to be a lot less work."

"For you, anyway." Winry suspected they would still be, if Aldon weren't mayor. "Even when we were kids, these were a lot of work. You just weren't around to notice."

For a moment, Ed looked like he might argue. Then he sighed and shook his head. "You're right, as usual."

"Good. Now that we've got that straight, let's go. Cassie and her team are waiting for us."

* * *

Ian wasn't sure what kind of a reception to expect from Mrs. Hargrove. He had come to Resembool many times since leaving home, but it had been a few years since he had actually spoken with her. Part of him wasn't entirely sure he wanted her to have seen a few of his movies, if only because the idea of watching his middle school theatre teacher watch him mostly naked with women was more than a little creepy. Or worse, what if she didn't like his work?

His fears were almost immediately put to rest as he and Bonnie walked up to the covered outdoor stage that was currently surrounded by school children of varying ages, going over lines, working on costumes, and making last minute additions to set pieces. Older students were up on ladders adjusting the few built-in lights that had been added to the outdoor stage. Ian was impressed, they had almost always done their more elaborate plays indoors when he was a kid. The outdoor stage had always required something much simpler.

"Ian!" Mrs. Hargrove spotted him almost at once, and made her way through the crowd. "It's so good to see you. I heard you were in town for the Festival from your brothers."

"It's nice to see you too, Mrs. Hargrove," Ian shook her hand warmly. "I couldn't resist coming down and catching a sneak peek of the show."

"Well we've got an excellent program lined up this year," she nodded proudly. "I dare say we have a couple of talents that rival you when you were here."

"Oh really? Then I'm really looking forward to seeing this! What's the production?"

" _A Mid-Autumn Night's Dream._ " Mrs. Hargrove pointed towards the stage, where Ian could see the trees and bushes mostly cut from wood that made up the setting for the forest-set classical comedy.

"I love that one." Bonnie's face lit up. "I did costumes for a production in high school."

"Are you going to introduce me to your lovely friend, Ian?"

Ian swallowed. "Of course. Mrs. Hargrove, this is Bonnie Walsh. She's one of the costume designers and make-up artists for Central Vision Studios." He didn't throw in the part about the line at Silverman's. Bonnie got embarrassed if he laid it on too thick.

"A pleasure," Mrs. Hargrove shook Bonnie's hand. "I hope you enjoy our little festival."

"Oh, I'm sure I will," Bonnie replied, returning the handshake. "I'm from a little town south of West City. Resembool feels a lot more like where I grew up than Central does."

"Well, please come have a look at what we're working on. I'm sure any suggestions you have would also be appreciated."  
Bonnie chuckled. "I'm happy to help if I can."

As they spoke, a teenage girl with a dark blond ponytail ran up to them. "Mrs. Hargrove, I can't seem to get the hem on the purple fairy dress to angle properly."

"Ready to play hero?" Ian asked Bonnie.

Bonnie smiled at him. "I can help," she said to the girl.

"Can you? Great!" The girl grabbed Bonnie's hand and dragged her away.

Ian couldn't help chuckling. "I'm not going to see her again until dinner."

"Not if Marina has anything to say about it," Mrs. Hargrove nodded in agreement. "She's the best student I have with costuming. She designed these herself, though they're a bit ambitious. She's been fretting for weeks."

"Bonnie can show her how to make them work," Ian said with conviction. This was her element.

"She's that good?"

"She's brilliant. CVS has been giving her a lot of work lately, and there's her new fashion line, out of Silverman's."

"So she's _that_ Walsh." Mrs. Hargrove's eyes lit up in recognition. "I've heard her name."

"From film or fashion?" Ian asked, surprised. Not the he would have called his old teacher _unfashionable_ , but she had never struck him as someone who followed the latest trends. She tended to wear more classic looks.

"Both, actually. I _read_ the credits." Mrs. Hargrove smiled knowingly. "You're not the only person I know in the business, Ian. Though I do have one of the scarves in her new fall collection," she admitted. "My nephew Paul bought it for me the last time he was on a business trip to Central."

"That's great." So his girlfriend's name was well-known. Ian would have to mention that to Bonnie—later. He didn't want to embarrass her in front of anyone. Right now she was clearly having a good time. Her hands were full of pins and she and Marina were arms-deep in fabric, pinning and adjusting. He knew better than to interrupt Bonnie when the creative juices were flowing.

"You know, I never believe what I read in the gossip rags…but I know what I see with my own eyes."

"What?" Ian blinked, looking back at his teacher.

Mrs. Hargrove chuckled. "She's good for you Ian. Now, why don't you come watch my stars do their final run-thru. They'd probably appreciate a few pointers from a local legend."

"Of course," he played along with her teasing. "Got anyone I should be scouting for CVS?"

"Possibly one or two. I'd like your opinion."

That might have been the biggest compliment she had ever paid him.

 **October 11** **th** **, 1985**

"You know you're grown when the best double-date night is staying in and playing cards and watching old movies," Alphonse chuckled, as he finished pouring freshly popped corn into two giant bowls in Ed and Winry's kitchen.

"You mean when we finally have the house to ourselves for a few hours?" Ed chuckled. He placed the last drink on the tray and picked it up.

"There is that." Al nodded. Randy and Lily were out in town somewhere on a date. So were Bonnie and Ian. Urey was out with Raina, but Al wouldn't have called that a date. They were showing Raina's parents around town, and while Al hadn't met them, he was well aware of how critical it was to Urey that their visit go well. Aldon had met them the day before—being the son of the mayor didn't hurt Urey's reputation at all—and had reported favorably of them when Ed and Al had asked.

"The movie's starting in three minutes," Winry announced. She and Elicia had already claimed seats on the two couches, with room for the boys to join them.

"We're ready," Al assured her as he came around the couch and sat down next to Elicia. He handed her one bowl of popcorn, and reached out to hand Winry the other.

The phone rang.

"I'll get it." Ed set the tray of drinks on the coffee table, within reach of Winry and Elicia. Then he returned to the wall by the kitchen where the phone hung. "Hello?"

"So how's the popcorn?" Al asked the girls as he slid his arm around Elicia's shoulders.

Winry popped a piece into her mouth. "Perfect balance of butter and salt."

"It's delicious," Elicia assured him.

"Hey, Al, it's for you."

Oh? Al stood up, crossing the room. "Who is it?" he asked as he took the receiver from his brother. "Hello?"

"It's Cal," his son-in-law's voice came over the phone.

Al tensed. "What's up?" he asked, instead of _what's wrong?_

There was a moment of silence. Then, in a rough voice, "It's Alyse. She… it's cancer."

The world dropped out from under him. _Are you sure?_ Another stupid question he didn't ask, not with Elicia behind him, not with everyone waiting. Had he told Ed? "What's the prognosis?"

"They've got to run more tests. We just found out. Alyse made me swear to call you before I go back in—"

"Which you've done," Al cut him off. "How are you? Both of you."

"Right now…too stunned to feel everything I'm feeling," Cal admitted. "Alyse is in shock—emotionally I mean. We're… it's been a shitty day."

"Go be with her. Give her hugs from us both," Al insisted, swallowing the lump of fear for his little girl. "Call when you can."

"I will. Thanks, Al." He hung up.

Al hung up the phone and turned around. Unsurprisingly, three sets of eyes were staring at him, waiting for an explanation of the other half of the conversation.

"What's wrong with Alyse?" Elicia asked, a tremor of fear in her voice.

Al crossed the room and pulled her tightly into his arms. Then he buried his face in her hair. His arms were trembling. "She's got cancer."


	15. Chapter 15

**October 12** **th** **, 1985**

The only light in the kitchen was the glow from the nightlight plugged into the socket next to the door to the living room. It was two in the morning, and Cal felt nothing. Not the cold of the linoleum floor on his bare foot. Not the soft tickle of fur as Miss Whiskers rubbed sympathetically against his one real lower leg.

He had too many feelings. They were at war with each other for dominance, and the result was that he couldn't seem to feel one of them long enough to embrace it. So he sat, staring into his coffee mug, in a half-numb haze that was slowly growing into a sense of dread.

Alyse had cried herself to sleep in his arms. For once, he had cried with her, though he had tried not to. The whole thing had turned into a blurred nightmare. The call from Alyse, summoning him from work to the hospital. The announcement. A lump in her left breast. Possibly one in the . More tests. They had spoken to more medical staff than Cal could remember talking to for anything before, ever. All of them with serious faces.

Once Alyse had fallen asleep, Cal had tucked her in and slipped downstairs. He couldn't sleep. His mind wouldn't let him.

It couldn't be. It wasn't fair. After everything they had been through, why this? Why now? Alyse didn't deserve to suffer even more. She hadn't done anything wrong.

The selfish part of him was angry. He'd dealt with so much pain and loss in his life. He wished he couldn't imagine life without Alyse, but he could…and it was an endless ocean of misery and depression. She was his world; her, and the life they had made together, their two children. Without her, everything he did was meaningless.

How was he going to tell the kids? Charlie had gone home with his friend Gill for an overnight hang-out at his place since it was Friday. He didn't know what had happened today at the hospital. He'd be home tomorrow, and Gloria… she was still in East City, having chosen to spend the fall break with a friend who lived there instead of spending days on a train home, or even to Resembool like her cousin Lily. She wasn't anywhere near family, and when he called her, he knew how she would respond.

Cal was tired of not being able to protect his family. He was helpless against an enemy he couldn't see; couldn't touch. He wasn't a doctor. His alchemy was useless against this. All he could do was take care of her, love her, support her, and while he knew that was all she asked, it still felt like he had somehow failed, again, to protect the woman he loved more than life itself.

"Ouch!"

Cal looked down at Miss Whiskers, who had nipped his bare leg, and was now looking up at him as if to say _how dare you ignore my affections._

"All right, Whiskey." Cal reached down and scooped her up, letting her sit on the table with him. It was something Alyse never allowed. He rubbed her head, and Miss Whiskers went back to purring. "Thanks for the pep talk." It was probably a good thing she was the only "Whiskey" in the house tonight. It had been quite a while since he had so badly _wanted_ to tell the world to go screw itself. On their vacation, he hadn't even needed his anxiety medication. Everything had been going so well, and then _WHAM_.

Cal looked down at his coffee mug, which was still half-full and gone cold. There was no point in sitting down here in the chilly kitchen, aside from the fact he hadn't wanted to wake Alyse with his restlessness. Unfortunately, the need for sleep, and his eventually succumbing to it, would be inevitable if he was going to get through tomorrow. He couldn't skip work tomorrow, and they wouldn't be spending the day at the hospital. The results of the latest tests wouldn't be back yet. He would have to struggle through a day of meetings he couldn't reschedule, and Alyse would have to make it through her day, before the weekend. Tomorrow, he'd have to deal with everyone he knew, suck it all up, and be Whitewater. Tomorrow, he'd have to tell his kids their mother was sick.

Tomorrow, he'd have to be brave for them…and for Alyse. He'd hold it together, because that was what they needed. He had sworn to take care of her for the rest of their lives, and he would do whatever he could to get them through this.

Another nip on his hand, and Cal realized he was petting the cat too hard.

"All right," he stood up and grabbed Miss Whiskers, who made a squawking meow of protest. "Let's go to bed cat. I think too much."

He let her go when he reached the bedroom, but Miss Whiskers immediately went to the bed, and leaped up to her habitual position by Alyse's feet.

Cal slid under the covers, and curled up against his wife, letting his arms cradle her. She sighed and inched back instinctively to be closer to him. He breathed in her scent, cherished her warmth, and prayed that their nights like this were not numbered much shorter than they had thought.

* * *

Gloria was glad she had decided to stay with her friend Florence over break. Florence's parents lived in a lovely home in a nice neighborhood in East City, and their little guest room was a far more comfortable place to stay than spending days on a train. As much as she might have liked to have gone to Resembool with Lily and Randy for the Harvest Festival, she had gotten so much done on projects for three of her classes already, that it was more than worth it.

It wasn't as if they hadn't had some fun already either. Gloria and Florence and a couple of their other friends who had stayed in town had been to the movies, tried a couple of restaurants that were usually too crowded to bother with when school was in session, and gone to a concert.

This afternoon they were going to see an exhibition at the East City Art Museum on the history of photojournalism in Amestris with one of Florence's cousins, who was coming in to town to visit. Gloria was up in the guest room finishing her hair when she heard the phone ring downstairs.

A minute later, as she put on the open green cardigan, Florence appeared in the open doorway. "It's your father, Gloria."

Her father was calling? Well, she supposed she shouldn't be surprised. She wasn't coming home or going to visit family. He was probably just worried about her. He did that.

Gloria turned around. "Thanks, Flo." She went downstairs and picked up the phone. "Hello, Daddy?"

"Hi, Peanut," her father's voice sounded tired on the other end of the phone. Gloria tensed. Her father hadn't called her peanut since she was eleven. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything."

"No, it's fine," she assured him. "We're going out to the museum in a little bit."

"That sounds great, honey." A long pause. "There's something I need to tell you."

She didn't like this. It only took his tone to tell her something was very wrong. "What is it?"

"Your mother has cancer."

"What?" For just a moment, her mind tried to insist this wasn't real. She was still asleep upstairs, dreaming, but she knew better. "How is she? Can I speak with her?"

"She's at home," he replied. "I'm at the office. If you call home I'm sure she wants to talk to you."

"Daddy, _how is she?_ "

"We don't know yet," her father admitted softly. "We're waiting on test results, then they'll decide on a plan for treatment. They say that's possible now, so we'll do whatever it takes for her to get well."

"I know, Daddy," Gloria tried to sound confident, but she heard her own voice waiver. Her eyes were beginning to blur with unshed tears. "I'll call Mom, and then I'll come home."

"No." Her father didn't even sound surprised. "You stay at school, Gloria. There's time, and you've still got classes."

"But—"

"There's nothing you can do here that you can't do there right now," he said more firmly. "You'll be home at the winter break, and we'll probably still be dealing with treatments then, the way they're talking already. You can call all you want. We'd love to hear from you, but missing out on the rest of your first semester won't help your mother."

She hated the truth in his statement. For a moment, she almost hated him for saying it. "I understand," she replied reluctantly. "But I don't like it."

"I didn't expect you to." Was that pride in his voice? "You're my girl. Now, go call your mother, and then you go to the museum with your friends like you were planning. Love you."

"Love you too, Daddy." Gloria didn't have it in her to say goodbye as they both hung up. Tears in her eyes, she reached into her pocket for a handkerchief to dab them. As she turned around, she almost ran into someone tall. Startled, she looked up. "I'm sorry."

"It's all right," the man standing there smiled disarmingly, blue eyes so dark they were nearly black twinkled above a hooked nose that was prominent, but not unpleasant, beneath thick, straight sandy-blond hair. Then his expression softened. "You look upset."

"Bad news from home," Gloria admitted, not really wanted to discuss it with a stranger.

"Gloria… oh, you've met Alexei." Florence stopped on the stairs and looked at her cousin.

So this was cousin Alexei, looking at her intently. "I'm sorry to hear that," he replied softly. "Is someone sick?"

"My mom," she admitted. "I'm sorry. I need to call her before we go to the museum."

"It's fine," Florence assured her. "We've got plenty of time before we were going to meet up with George and the others. Go ahead and call, and we'll leave when you're ready."

"Thank you." Gloria replied. She realized she was still looking into Alexei's eyes and looked away as she dabbed her eyes clear. She reached for the phone, dialing the home number by heart. She wouldn't be able to enjoy the rest of the day without hearing from her mother that she was doing all right or, at the very least, the truth of the situation.

She didn't put it past her father to understate the severity of the situation to spare her worries. Not that she was sure how you could understate _cancer_ but if it was possible, her father would have done it.

 **October 13** **th** **, 1985**

The first day of the Harvest Festival was too beautiful to waste, though Alphonse wished he had more enthusiasm for it. He and Elicia had spoken with Alyse the day before, and while they didn't have any new information, she had sounded more positive than Cal's initial announcement. Not that Alphonse couldn't tell his daughter was trying to be positive to keep them from worrying. It hadn't worked.

Still, he knew she wouldn't want to be the reason her family didn't enjoy the holiday, so Alphonse walked down to the Festival with Elicia on his arm, determined to have a good time. "What do you want to do first?" he asked his wife as they reached the entrance to the grounds. "The animals? The craft exhibits?" There was quite a while until the performances in the later afternoon.

"The food?" Elicia teased, with a knowing smile.

"Well, eventually," Al chuckled. "But it's a little early for that."

"In that case, let's start with the craft exhibits," Elicia smiled. "Winry's been telling me that there's a woman in town who's been doing the most intricate quilt patterns. I thought I'd see if there was anything Mom and I want to try."

Quilts, of course. Al smiled indulgently and led the way. "Quilts it is then."

* * *

Ian didn't think their trip could be going better. At least, not when he was realistic about the speed of his relationship with Bonnie. It was worth spending the entire morning watching the grown cattle, sheep, and horses go through confirmation shows, and then some trick riding. It wasn't as big here as it was out in the Western part of the country, but it had grown in popularity, and according to Bonnie they were pretty good. One of Deanna's brother's won the competition.

"I'd like to try that against him sometime," Bonnie smiled as they headed into the main part of the fair, away from the outdoor arena. "Though I'm awfully out of practice."

"You could certainly ride more while we're here though, if you wanted to," Ian pointed out. "Deanna's parents wouldn't mind. They let the kids around here ride their horses all the time."

"I'm not exactly a local kid," Bonnie pointed out.

"No," Ian let his arm drape loosely around her shoulders. "I'd be pretty disappointed if you were."

"You're not really the kind I picture having a thing for girls that much younger than you."

Ian dared to tighten his grip just the tiniest bit more. "I really only go after one kind of girl."

Bonnie's face flushed.

Ian grinned. "I'm thirsty. Let's get a drink." With that, he led her to his favorite stall in all of the fair, and immediately bought two tall mugs. "Here, you'll love this."

"What is it?" she looked curious as he handed her one.

"The best apple cider you've ever tasted," he promised, taking a long, slow drink himself, letting the blend of sweet and sharp bite wash over his tongue. When he tilted his drink back, she was still looking at him curiously. "What? It's not the _hard_ cider." As if he'd offer her anything like that.

"Oh. I didn't meant to imply…" Bonnie stopped trying to explain and took a drink instead. Immediately her eyes widened, and Ian knew he'd made another convert. "That's delicious."

"One of my favorites ever since I was a kid." Ian grinned. "Some people around here prefer the spring Sheep Festival, but I've always liked Harvest. More food for one thing."

"And the other?" Bonnie asked curiously.

Ian winked at her. "Cooler weather makes girls dance closer."

For a moment, he thought he might get a mug of cider in the face, but Bonnie shook her head instead. "You know, your teacher and I had a nice long chat."

"You did?" Ian had gotten wrapped up enough in coaching the actors the other afternoon, he'd lost track of what else was going on in the chaos. "What did she tell you?"

Bonnie smiled. "That you were the biggest flirt she ever taught."

 _Gee, thanks, Mrs. Hargrove._ "Nothing else?"

"She also said you were one of the nicest, and the most trustworthy." Bonnie hid her smile in her cider.

Ian removed the sarcastic tone from his previous thought. "I never missed a rehearsal or a cue," he commented, not quite sure how else to respond.

"Humility, from you. That might be a first." Bonnie chuckled, then leaned in and kissed him. He didn't know quite what she meant, but he went with it. Anything that made Bonnie want to kiss him had to be good.

* * *

Urey wanted to be sure he was getting along all right with Raina's parents before introducing Yurian to them. Mostly because, now that he and his son were finally bonding, and he thought that the relationship might last, he still didn't want to push things too fast and hurt Yurian. Their new family dynamic was still fragile. Or at least, Urey felt like it was. Yurian seemed to have no reservations about spending as much time as possible with his Daddy, and Urey could only thank his parents for raising his son to be so kind and forgiving. It certainly hadn't been his doing.

He needn't have worried. Raina's reports to her mother about her boyfriend's son had apparently been glowing, but not exaggerated. Urey had picked up Yurian at his parents' house early so that they could go over to Raina's together. It was close enough to her house to the fair that they hadn't had to borrow Grandpa Ed's car.

Since Raina's father was not an early riser, Urey and Yurian spent the morning at the fair first, running around and doing all the things a young boy wanted to do that would require too much energy for Raina's father. Yurian was a very energetic little boy. It was no wonder he was so much leaner than Urey had ever been at that age. They looked at all the animals on display, ate apples dipped in caramel, played the carnival games that were set up and run every year by the Senior Citizen's club, and even took part in some of the family races. They didn't win the tie-legged race, but they were pretty good with eggs-on-spoons and a horse-race where the parent was the horse and the child was the rider. The only game they won was the eggs race, but they had a very good time. Urey didn't think he'd ever get tired of the big, enthusiastic hugs Yurian gave when he was happy.

"We're going to meet Miss Raina's mom and dad today," Urey told his son as they walked up to Raina's little house.

"I remember," Yurian nodded. "I'll be my best behavior!"

Urey didn't correct the grammar. He just smiled. "I know you will." With that he took a deep breath, released it, and rang the doorbell.

Raina's mother opened the door, beamed down at Yurian, and held out her arms. "Aren't you adorable? Come to Grandmummy Maggie!"

Yurian didn't hesitate. He never did when it came to hugs. He grinned and hugged the woman, who squealed delightedly.

Urey looked up at Raina and mouthed _Grandmummy Maggie?_

Raina grinned back and replied, _Go with it._

Raina's father seemed just as pleased—if less exuberant—to meet Yurian, whom he declared a "fine boy" before they were out the door and heading back down the hill, much slower than they had climbed it. By the time they reached the fair, Percival was puffing and short of breath, though he refused the offer of a moment to sit. "Nonsense. We won't see anything sitting down!"

Urey decided before too long that he was glad that Raina and her mother had set the speed of the activity. They played a couple of the carnival games that they hadn't earlier, which let Raina's parents engage with Yurian.

"You weren't kidding about your parents wanting grandchildren," Urey commented quietly to Raina, while her parents were completely focused on petting a sheep with Yurian. Given they didn't see many farm animals, Raina's parents seemed to be enjoying it as much as Yurian was.

"There was one point where my mother found me four "nice boys" to go out with in a row in a two month period," Raina admitted.

Urey winced. "And how did that go?" he asked, grinning.

She elbowed him in the side.

By the time it was almost time for the student performances, they had made it across the fair, stopping nearly a dozen time for different treats.

"We'll see you later," Raina promised as she took Yurian with her. The youngest grades were performing a song together, and they were going first so they didn't have long.

Urey was left alone with his girlfriend's parents. "Let's find seats," he suggested.

"Of course, of course," Percival nodded.

Urey was glad they found seats on the front row, arriving as early as they had. He wasn't entirely certain Raina's father would have fit cramped into a smaller space in one of the rows further back. The audience of chairs filled up quickly, and soon there were people sitting on the hill behind them, and clambering all over the place to watch. The only reason the crowd wasn't too unreasonable, was because all of the school aged children were back behind the stage, and the cloth wings extending beyond it, preparing to go on. When he glanced around, Urey could see most of the rest of his family in the audience. He didn't see Ian and his girlfriend, but he had a suspicion that they might actually be backstage helping with last minute preparations. It seemed like the kind of thing they would both do.

The performances turned out to be some of the best yet. Not that Urey had bothered to pay much attention to the past few years. He had come with the family, but he'd been too depressed to really enjoy them.

The youngest grades, Yurian included, sang a song about harvesting fruits and vegetables. Each of them was dressed one of several different produce. Yurian was, in his not-so-humble opinion- the cutest carrot ever.

He also thought that Miss Raina Summers was the best looking—and curviest—radish he'd ever seen.

The performances got progressively longer, and generally better, as the kids got older. By the time they got to his oldest niece, Rhiana, they were doing fully memorized skits with costumes. Urey was impressed, and a little disturbed when he realized that his niece was on the verge of womanhood. Finally, they reached the high school production.  
It was a very funny play, involving two couples sneaking off into the woods, and the hijinx that ensued when they ran into chimera-like creatures that were mostly whimsical and weird. Of course, after a couple of mistaken identities, playful pranks on the part of the woodland chimeras, and plenty of chaos, it had a happy romantic ending.

"That was very enjoyable," Percival was grinning as they went to meet up with Yurian and Raina after the show.

"Did you see me, Daddy?" Yurian leapt into Urey's arms.

"I did." Urey grinned. "You were the best carrot I've ever seen!" He hugged his son before setting him down on the ground so Percival and Magnolia could lavish him with well-earned praise. "And I've never wanted to sleep in a bed of lettuce so much in my life," he muttered to Raina as he kissed her cheek, which turned almost as rosy as her beet-red sweater. "I had no idea grown vegetables were so appealing."

"No, those would be bananas."

Urey refrained from groaning. He'd deserved that. Afterwards, they all retreated to his grandparents' house for the traditional Harvest Festival meal. He was grateful that Grandpa Ed and Granny had been all right with Raina's family joining them. She hadn't had time to cook more than a dish to share, with preparing the school children, and he couldn't think of a better family to eat with when it came to sharing traditional Harvest Festival food. So he hurried home, fetched the car, and drove them over.

This year the cooking had been split between houses, as busy as the family was with Festival planning, and it all arrived potluck, but it was just as good and plentiful as always. After everyone had eaten as much as they wanted, they sat around and talked. The children went outside to run around in the yard, followed my Mal, who Urey knew probably wouldn't play much with them, but he would insist on keeping watch, especially as it started to get dark.

At the point it occurred to Urey that no one was paying any attention to him or Raina whatsoever, he took advantage of the moment to pull her away and sneak outside. They went out on the back end of the porch, which overlooked the pool and the gardens, and where the kids weren't around to spy. For a while, there was no talking as he pulled her into his arms.

"I wish you didn't have to go," Urey murmured as their lips parted.

Raina smiled regretfully. "I'm pretty sure my parents would notice if I spent the night."

There was that, and Urey didn't dare consider staying over while they were visiting. Her parents liked him right now. He'd like to keep it that way. Especially if this was going to be a long, lasting relationship. "I guess I can't argue with that," he conceded, glad they were only staying a few more days. He hadn't realized just how quickly he had gotten used to spending all of his unscheduled time with Raina. "Got to keep the folks happy. They seem to be enjoying themselves."

"I haven't seen them this excited to socialize in years." Raina chuckled. "Daddy always says he can't find anyone to talk to who can keep up with him. With your family around, I think he's going to have reevaluate that statement." It was true, he'd been in rapt conversation with Grandpa Ed and Alphonse and his dad most of the evening. He'd been so wrapped up in conversation the festival meal was, ironically, possibly the least Urey had seen him eat during his visit so far. "Given how little they get out since Daddy retired, Mom's in conversation heaven." Her smile grew a little sad.

"You're worried about him."

She nodded. "He has a lot of health issues, but neither Mom nor I can get him to acknowledge that he needs to do something about them. Daddy's stubborn."

Urey refrained from mentioning that he'd noticed that particular attribute. "He's proud. You notice he refused to look tired in front of Yurian though."

"I haven't seen him that active in years," Raina admitted.

"Maybe if he spent more time with grandkids, he'd have more motivation to keep up."

"Yeah, but..." Raina stopped and looked up at him, startled. "Did you just say what it sounds like you said?"

For a moment, Urey froze. Had he? "I did," he acknowledged, giving her a little squeeze. "It's true, isn't it?"

Now she looked flustered. "Well, yes, but that's not exactly what I meant."

Urey couldn't help smiling. "I know, but it's something that's been on my mind, and I know it's on yours, or you wouldn't have been so eager to introduce Yurian to your parents." He loosened his hold on her just a little, so she could stand without being crushed against him. "Or me, for that matter. I've been doing a lot of thinking about my life lately, and where it's going. I'm finally in a job that uses my skills, and for the first time, I feel like a father to my son. Once I can manage it, I'll have a place where he and I can live together without having to rely on my grandparents, or my parents, to put us up. It's a lot of change, and it's happening so fast, but it's good... and it's all because of you."

"What did I do, to generate this frenzy of change?"

"You brought love back into my life. You helped me see my son as just himself, and not a symbol of my loss and my failings. Seeing that made me want to know him, to be his father and support him before it was too late. I realized it wasn't too late." He brought one hand up, cupping the soft line of her jaw in his palm. "My whole life had stalled, and that's no one's fault but my own. There was nothing left I cared about, because I was afraid; to try again, to be hurt, to let myself feel the pain... to let myself let it go and move on. But you reminded me, you showed me, just how good it is to live again."

Wide-eyed in the darkness, Raina averted her eyes. "I'm not sure I deserve that much credit."

Too much... too strong. Urey smiled anyway and adjusted his tack. "I love you, Raina. Even if, for some reason, this doesn't work out, I will always be grateful for your friendship, and your belief in me. But... I have no intention of giving this up. When I'm honest with myself, this is the best relationship I've ever found, and may ever find. It works, and I've never been this happy. I hope you feel the same, because I intend to do everything I can to make sure this works out... I want us to be together, and I can see it. I can't help planning for it in my head, what our life might be like in the future." For the first time ever, the idea of ever having another child did not fill him with dread.

For a moment, he was afraid he had taken the conversation too far too quickly. Raina stood there, absorbing his words, a deeply thoughtful expression on her lovely face, for far longer than made him feel comfortable. Then, to his relief, she smiled. "I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks that way. Can I be honest?"

"Are you ever anything else?"

Raina reached up and took his hand from her cheek, squeezing it in hers. "I love you, too. I think about the future all the time, and I want that to be with you. I've been a little afraid that you'd put too much into this, too fast. I didn't want to hurt you if, for some reason, we didn't stay together. I never want to be the reason your world stops again." She took a long, slow breath, and seemed to relax. "I feel better knowing we're on the same page. I want to be your love and your partner, but I never want to be your savior on a pedestal."

A valid concern, and one that reminded him why she was a woman worth keeping. "Would you feel better if I said I loved you because I adore your macaroni-and-cheese, your quirky sense of humor, and that little mole on the small of your back that no one but me gets to see?"

"You sure know how to sweet talk a woman."

"Only the right woman." He leaned in to kiss her again, and Raina reciprocated.

It was too bad the evening had to end. They separated as one of the doors onto the long wraparound porch opened, and Granny Winry stepped out to join them. "Sorry to interrupt," she smiled, "But Percival and Magnolia said they're ready to go back to the house."

"Thanks, Granny." Urey turned back to Raina. "I'll get the car and drive you home."

"Thank you." Raina gave him a last quick kiss on the cheek before she went inside.

Granny was watching him. "Magnolia wanted to come find you herself."

Wouldn't it have been just dandy to have her walk in on the conversation they'd just had? "You're the best, Granny."

Winry chuckled. "What can I say? I'm a sucker for a good love story."


	16. Chapter 16

**October 15** **th** **, 1985**

Cal did not have a fondness for doctors or hospitals. He appreciated everything they had done to put him back together over the years, but the antiseptic smell never brought to mind any good memories.

He didn't expect today to be the start of any more good memories either as he sat there, meeting with Alyse for the two doctors who would be overseeing her cancer treatments. He had taken the morning off to come with her, unwilling to let her face the unknown alone.

Alyse was trying not to look scared, but he knew better from the way her hand was clutching his. Still, he was proud of her for her outward calm the past few days, and her insistence on not cancelling their weekend plans, which had included taking Charlie and a couple of his friends to car show.

Now they were looking at images that demonstrated the extent of the cancer in her body, and Cal didn't like what they were seeing, not at all, and not just because he had always been fond of his wife's breasts. He tried to focus back in on what Dr. Martins was telling them.

"We'll be doing chemical treatments every two weeks," Ellen Martins was explaining, "These will be alternating with bi-weekly alchemical sessions with Dr. Xinai," she gestured to Ran Xinai, who Cal knew only in passing. The Xingese-Amestrian gentleman had trained in alkahestry in Xing before interning with Ren and Ethan several years before.

"Excuse me," Cal cut in, trying to be polite. He had heard all sorts of unpleasant things about the treatments involved in killing cancer. They sounded like nothing better than burning it out of her body. "Is there a reason all of the treatments can't be alkahestry?" Surely that was better for Alyse.

He didn't like their sympathetic, understanding looks. "To get rid of all of such an aggressive cancer only with alchemy would require more energy than the human body can survive," Dr. Xinai explained. "We're going to hit it as aggressively as we can, but this is the best treatment regimen available. The combination is the best way to minimize the side-effects of the medicinal treatment while hitting it as aggressively as possible."

"How long will the treatments last?" Alyse asked.

"We're going to start with eight cycles," Dr. Martins said, "So sixteen weeks."

"Sixteen _weeks_?" Cal blurted out louder than he'd meant to.

"We can't put any treatments too close together safely," Xinai pointed out. "As it is, this will exhaust your physical resources," he was looking at Alyse. "The worst side effects will be exhaustion, temporary nausea, and the temporary loss of your hair."

Alyse's free hand moved upward involuntarily. "How temporary?"

"Once treatments are done, it will grow back," Martins assured her with a sympathetic smile. "Though I can't guarantee what color it will be when itdoes."

Cal bit his tongue. Objecting to Alyse's hair falling out wouldn't serve any purpose. Besides, she was taking it far better than he would have. As much as he wanted to ask more questions, his temper was too short.

Alyse was nodding thoughtfully. "There are worse things than a new hair color."

"It also tends to come in curly." Martins nodded.

Cal waited impatiently through the rest of the explanation. There was a lot of instructions, warnings, medical jargon, and all he really wanted to know was whether or not it would work.

Alyse was the one who asked the hard question first. "What if this doesn't work?"

"It will depend on progress," Martins replied. "If the treatments are working, we can determine how many more may be necessary to eradicate the cancer completely. If not, there is also the option of surgery."

Cal almost fell out of his chair. "Surgery?"

Martins nodded. "There is the option of removing one, or both, breasts should it be necessary, but obviously that's not our first choice."

Well, he would hope not. "I understand," he replied instead.

"Now, let's discuss scheduling."

"Thank you," Alyse said as he put the car in drive and pulled out of the hospital parking lot almost an hour later.

"For what?"

"For coming…and for not saying half of what you were thinking."

He couldn't keep from cracking a smile. "You know me too well." He glanced sideways, and caught Alyse playing with a lock of her hair. "You know," he said, turning his gaze back to the road, "You'd make a pretty cute blond."

"What?" Alyse glanced over at him, confused.

"I was just thinking, they make really realistic wigs for parts in a lot of movies—Ian's girlfriend mentioned it that time we had them over for dinner—if you wanted, we could have one made. It could be any style you wanted, even just like your actual hair… and then no one would even know it wasn't your real hair. That is… if you wanted."

There was a long silence, and he began to wonder if he'd offended her somehow by bringing it up.

"That might be nice." Alyse's left hand reached out and rested on his thigh. "It would be better than having people stare at me."

"I stare at you all the time."

That got him a well-earned eye roll. "I know I shouldn't be worried about something as small as my hair. Not with… how serious this is but—at least it's something I can control.

I just… it's not fair." Her voice cracked.

Cal let one hand rest on hers as they stopped at a light. "No, it's not, but I'm here, and we'll get through this. Anything you need, no matter what it is, I'll handle it."

"You always do."

 **October 16** **th** **, 1985**

The fourth day of the fair wasn't as crowded as the first two, which always fell on the weekend, but there was still plenty to do around town. Since the main fair events wouldn't kick off until the end of the day when the children got off school and most adults got off work. That evening would be horse races, but until then Ian and Bonnie had plenty of time to just enjoy by themselves. Today Ian found himself surprisingly entertained by watching Bonnie hunt through the stores of downtown Resembool. Even for a town that was growing, their biggest shopping was mostly antique and thrift stores, and an enterprising department store, Harmons, that had decided to open a small outlet on the north end of town where most of the newer, larger neighborhoods were.

Ian still found it a little weird to see how much of a suburb had grown up around the old farming community, even though it had started long before he was born.

Bonnie was in country girl heaven as they looked through store after store of clothes, furniture, and knickknacks.

"Do you even know what you're looking for?" Ian finally asked with some amusement after three hours of shopping.

"You assume that antiquing is like going to the supermarket," Bonnie replied as she held up a soft green embroidered tablecloth. "Think of it more like treasure hunting. I get inspiration from places like this."

"For costumes?"

"Costumes, fabric set pieces… gifts for family members." She gestured to a predominantly red-and-yellow patterned quilt hanging on a rack. "That, for example, would look amazing in my parent's living room, and those are my mother's favorite colors."

Having seen her mother's living room, Ian could agree. "It's very nice."

"It's also excellent quality." Bonnie picked it up and gestured to the quilting. "See how intricate this pattern is? Someone put a lot of effort into that. You can even tell this is hand stitching instead of machine."

"If everyone in Central is wearing quilts next winter, I'll know why," Ian teased. "It's a beautiful quilt though."

He wasn't at all surprised when they walked out of the store not long after, with the quilt tucked safely in a bag. "You start shopping early."

"I shop all year," she replied. "That way I can break down how much I spend over the year and it doesn't take a chunk out of any of my paychecks."

Ian felt a little guilty. For all that he knew Bonnie worked a lot harder than he did—in his mind—wardrobe didn't get paid as well as some of his jobs did, especially his feature roles. "That's smart." He smiled. "So, want to get some lunch before we check out the next store?"

"If you're hungry, I suppose we can stop somewhere." Bonnie smiled. "Though I don't know how you're hungry with all the food that's been around this week."

"Are you complaining?" Ian teased. "You, who always gripes about having to adjust my wardrobe."

"I'd be happier if you could keep it on and maintain it," she corrected him. "Having met the rest of your family, somehow I don't think I have to worry about your metabolism giving out on you."

"Lucky for my career." Ian draped his arm loosely around her shoulders, and was happy when she moved in a little closer instead of pulling away. Apparently here she didn't mind a little public affection. She shivered. "You like that, huh?"

"What?" Bonnie gave him a funny look. "I'm—what's that?"

Ian stopped walking. It wasn't Bonnie that was shaking…it was the whole street. It started a slow rumble, then suddenly he heard what sounded like a sharp shot, and the ground underneath them jumped as it seemed to roll underneath them.

Bonnie stumbled and grabbed him. "What the hell?"

"It's…an earthquake!" Ian realized, as other people in the street reacted the same way. The buildings shook, something that sounded like glass cracking made someone else shriek. Potted plants fell off a balcony nearby, and small cracks appeared in the street.

Bonnie clutched him tightly, as Ian moved to the middle of the street.

It felt like forever, but judging by the clock in the nearby town square, the earthquake didn't seem to last more than about thirty seconds.

"You didn't mention those when you said we should come for vacation," Bonnie commented as they straightened up in the dusty street.

"Not a common occurrence. Are you okay?" Ian asked, trying not to look as startled as he felt.

"Just a little shaken." Bonnie nodded.

People were pouring out into the street now. Ian saw lots of folks he recognized. None of the buildings looked particularly bad off, though there were cracks in a few bricks. Nothing in the immediate area had collapsed.

Ian was beginning to think that a scare was the worst of it until he saw his father, and several other men coming out of the town hall, and running past him. "What's going on?" he shouted.

His father turned around only long enough to answer. "There's been a collapse at the school!"

* * *

Urey sprinted the distance from the hospital pharmacy to the school in record time, a sense of near-panic stomped down only by the desperate need to keep moving. The news that the school had collapsed had spread across town in minutes, phones ringing almost off the hook as those in the parts of the extended building that hadn't collapsed called out for help.

The Resembool fire department and police arrived at the same time he did, but Urey didn't stop, though his heart might have if it wasn't pounding so hard. A corner of the building had collapsed, and everything was chaos as lines of children were evacuating from other doors.

He saw his father and Ian talking to the principal, and changed directions just enough to join them. In the crowds he couldn't tell where Yurian was, or Raina, or any of his nieces and nephews.

Aldon turned and saw him as Urey ran the last few yards.

"Where's Yurian?" he gasped first.

"With his class," his father replied. "They were on the playground when the earthquake hit. He's fine."

Thank goodness. "And Raina?"

He didn't like the shared looks between his father and Ian. The Principal had already gone back to giving directions to the teachers.

"Dad…"

"She was in her classroom," Aldon replied. "There are about a dozen people who were still in the north wing when it collapsed. They're working on rescue operations now."

Urey nodded. He knew where he needed to be, and he didn't waste another word as he hurried towards the rubble, ignoring the startled shout behind him.

He wasn't the only alchemist in town he saw as he approached. Grandpa Ed and Great-Uncle Alphonse were there with the rescue team, transmuting rubble out of the way in small sections under the direction of the rescue team. Urey could see the sense in that. They didn't want anything else collapsing. He was grateful for that, and also glad to see that his help probably wouldn't be turned away.

"What can I do?" he asked Rodney Lark, the fire department chief.

"Join the team on the north wall," Lark gestured to his left. "They're clearing the entrance. Most of the internal hallway looks like it should be structurally intact."

Urey nodded and went where he was told. The team on the north wall turned out to consist of four firemen he knew, including the volunteer contingent. His father's friend Ollie Larson was there and handed Urey a protective hard hat. "We're clearing this first," he gestured to the pile of stone rubble that had fallen across the doorway from above.

Urey pulled chalk out of his pocket. A habit he had only recently returned to, and now he was glad he had. "I've got this." He sketched out a transmutation circle in record time. On the other side of the wing, he could hear and feel the other transmutations nearby. Urey pressed his hands to the circle, and transmuted. In a few seconds, the broken stones were gone, reformed into functional blocks, sitting off to the side where they could be used later.

"Nice work." One of the firefighters clapped him on the shoulder. "Let's go."

"I'm coming in."

No one argued with Urey. He was their alchemist. Once inside the school, it was still slow going as they moved down the hall only after being sure that the ceiling above them in the two-story expansion of the original building wasn't going to collapse on them. Urey used alchemy to verify and reinforce the supporting structure. Then they rounded the hall and his heart plummeted. The entire end of the building was a mess.

A mess that fell just short of Raina's classroom door, which was the first one they would come to. "Raina?" he called out as they moved down the hall.

"Urey!"

He had never been so relieved to hear a voice. He hurried to her door, which was open, and partially blocked by a block of concrete. "Are you all right?" he peered through the door.

"I'm fine," she assured him, and he could see her through the crack. Her hair was a mess, but other than a scrape on her cheek, she did appear unharmed. "I tried to get in the doorway. When it started to collapse I ducked under my desk."

Thank goodness for those huge metal desks the teachers had. Part of Urey's chest loosened. "We're getting you out. Hold on a minute."

With the most care he'd ever given a transmutation, Urey cleared the doorway, reinforcing and repairing the wall around it as he went. When he was done, the door opened easily, and Raina practically fell into his arms. He clutched her tightly. "Don't scare me like that again," he murmured softly into her ear.

"I won't." Raina's grip on him confirmed that she certainly meant it.

Only because there was still work to do, did Urey loosen his old. "Let's get you out of here. We've got to rescue the others."

Raina didn't argue, and Urey reluctantly allowed someone else to escort her outside; only because he was needed here. Slowly he continued to repair sections of hallway and move rubble, all too aware that what was above them could come down on their heads if he made a mistake. Not unlike the time he'd rescued Ian and his friends in that mine when they were boys.

It took another hour, but by the time Urey and the team he was with came back out of the building, they had rescued two more teachers and four students, none of which had any injuries worse than scrapes and bruises. The other teams had pulled two more teachers, and three students out through the windows.

Urey gratefully accepted a cup of water as he pulled the hard hat off his head and wiped the sweat from his brow with his sleeve. All around him was organized chaos, but it was a lot less crowded. It was already mid-afternoon he realized, and school had, understandably, been cancelled for the rest of the day, so most of the children had gone home. The injured were being taken by car to the hospital for treatment.

"Daddy!"

Urey turned and saw his son running towards him, Granny Winry standing at the street. He bent down and grabbed his son, pulling him up in a big bear hug. "There you are," he grunted as Yurian latched his arms around him with a strength that no longer surprised him. "I'm so glad you're save."

"I'm fine, Daddy," Yurian said. "Granny said everyone is safe."

"Yes, everyone's okay," Urey promised him.

"He didn't want to go home," Granny Winry explained as she joined them. "No one's there yet, and he didn't want to stay at Deanna's with the other children while you were here."

"Where's Raina?" Urey asked.

"At the hospital. They had everyone go there to be patched up and checked for any injuries that might not have been obvious," Winry replied. "I thought we would go over there next."

Urey nodded. "I'll come too." He probably shouldn't have left his post at work, but he hadn't been the only one. He got permission to leave from the chief, who assured him that his services had been invaluable, but he should go rest. He would do that only after he had checked on Raina.

The walk through the southern end of town and then east to the hospital showed Urey the extend of the damage in other areas. He hadn't paid attention on the run there, but several buildings showed damage, some of it cosmetic, others clearly in need of structural repair. There were people going around with bandages, though he suspected any serious injuries wouldn't be out of the hospital yet. "This is… I've never seen anything like this," Urey admitted as they walked.

"This isn't bad," Winry surprised him. "You should see what it looks like after a war, or a bigger disaster. From what I understand, no one died today. This could have been so much worse."

Which, of course, he wouldn't know, having remained in Resembool during the attempted coup in Xing. "Has Resembool ever had earthquakes before?" He didn't remember any in his lifetime.

"We've had a couple of smaller ones," his grandmother replied, frowning thoughtfully. "But never anything of this magnitude that I can remember. My Granny talked about them being more common back when the mines were newer. They stopped blasting deeper because they were breaking the rocks up too badly. Something about old oil drilling rigs too… I don't remember it all anymore," she admitted apologetically.

"It's all right, Granny." Urey didn't say anything about her being old enough that forgetting things from her childhood was understandable. He had a feeling it would get him hit in the head. Mining, oil drilling… interesting. "There's a new oil company on the other side of Mavon's Mountain."

"We should find out if they're drilling in the same place." Winry nodded. "It's possible they don't know about the fault line, or at least the no-drilling zone. If they don't know about the fault line they're not very good at their jobs."

Urey's thoughts left rocks and earthquakes the moment they reached the hospital. He saw his mother before he found Raina.

"I hear you're one of today's heroes," Cassie smiled as she paused to hug him in the hallway.

Urey shrugged. "No more than anyone else. Is Raina still here?"

Cassie nodded. "She's in room 106, with her parents."

"Are they all right?" It hadn't occurred to Urey to worry about them. He'd thought they were at Raina's house. Then he realized it hadn't occurred to him to be concerned about any of the buildings outside of town. Surely the earthquake had reached well past the farms.

"They weren't hurt," she assured him, "But apparently her father got it in his head he could run to the school from her house when he heard about the school being damaged."

Urey tried to put Percival Summers and _run_ in the same image in his mind. "What happened?"

"He collapsed, thankfully he _didn't_ give himself a heart attack." Cassie shook her head. "Anyway, you should go see her." With that, she turned and hurried off.

"We'll wait here," Winry said, holding a hand out to Yurian.

"Can't I go with Daddy?"

"Not right now," Winry shook her head. "They can't let lots of visitors go in at one time or everyone in town would be in here."

"That'd be crowded," Yurian nodded, though he sighed dramatically.

Urey smiled. "I'll be back soon," he promised. Then he hurried down the hall to room 106.

Raina and her mother were both seated in chairs. Her father was lying in a hospital bed. Raina stood the moment he came in, and she hugged him again, just as tightly as earlier. Urey hugged her close, resisting the urge to kiss her too passionately in front of her parents. When she released him, Magnolia was standing there and—to his surprise—hugged him as well.

"You saved our daughter."

Now, he decided, was not the time to insist he hadn't really done anything any more impressive than anyone else. "I couldn't do otherwise," he replied, deciding nothing he said wasn't going to sound a little corny. "Are you all right, Mr. Summers?" he looked past her to the her husband.

"Call me Percy, Urey," the large man replied, sounding short of breath. "And yes, I'm fine."

"Lucky for you," Magnolia replied, the smile vanishing from her face as she released Urey and returned to the bedside. "What were you thinking?"

Raina stepped back, pulling Urey with her as her parents argued. "Daddy had the radio on at my house when the earthquake hit. As soon as he heard the report that the school was damaged, he took off. I'm still amazed he made it _to_ the schoolyard before he collapsed. They thought it might be a heart attack, but it looks like he just overexerted himself. He hasn't run in years, not since his knees started going." Her lip trembled. "The doctors are still running some tests, but they said he should be able to leave the hospital tomorrow. They want to keep him tonight, just to be safe."

Urey nodded. "That's probably a good idea. So, do you need to stay?"

Raina shook her head. "No, I'm free to go, and I think my parents would like some time alone. Or at least," she glanced back at her mother, "my father might prefer to get his berating in private."

"I know I would. Let's go," Urey turned back towards the door. "I'll take you home. Then maybe we can get something to eat?" He'd entirely missed lunch, and his stomach was turning angrily.

Raina smiled. "I've got plenty of food in the refrigerator."

Quietly, they left the room.

* * *

"What now?" Aldon asked Ed he stood with his father and uncle, looking at the school building in the late-afternoon fading sunlight. The rescue teams had left, and all the families had gone home to see to their own houses and businesses. There were more buildings in town that would need repair than just this one.

"Oh, this is nothing," Ed grinned, waving his hand casually in the air. "We'll have the school fixed in a couple of days." Given what he, Al, and Urey had done already, he had little doubt they would manage it.

"And the rest of town?" Al asked with a knowing smile.

Ed shrugged "Might take a little longer."

"It can wait until tomorrow," Winry commented as she and Elicia joined them. "You boys have done enough for one day."

Ed reached out and slid his arm around her waist. "Not enough, but it'll do for now. I just hope this is a one-time event. It's been decades since we've had even a tremor in Resembool. I wonder why this one was so large."

"Urey and I were discussing it earlier," Winry said as they all turned and started walking towards home. "He thought the new oil operation in the mountains might be part of the problem."

Ed hadn't thought about that. "We should look into it," he agreed, turning to look at Aldon.

Aldon nodded. "I'll definitely be giving them a call. Tell Cassie I'll be home late. I've got a lot to handle tonight." He split off and headed back towards the town hall.

"I don't envy him the next few days," Elicia commented softly.

Ed shook his head. "Me neither." His son would be dealing with everything from minor disasters to irate homeowners who felt their individual problems were more important than others. He would be surprised if they saw Aldon doing anything except work for the next several days. He took his job as Mayor very seriously. That was why he was still in office. "Speaking of Urey, where is he now?"

"He and Yurian took Raina home. Her father's in the hospital tonight, so I don't expect we'll see Urey before tomorrow."

Ed didn't ask why. He'd been at the school when Percival and Magnolia had arrived, and witnessed the collapse in question, though more capable medical personnel than himself had been on hand and he had been rather tied up with the building rescue operation. If Raina's parents weren't there, Urey didn't have a reason to come home.

He was beginning to wonder how long it would be before Urey moved out completely. His grandson had been talking about getting his own place, where he could raise Yurian. Ed would be willing to place bets that he and Raina moved in together before Urey actually got a place of his own. Not that he had said that particular thought out loud. "Is everyone else okay?" He hadn't had an opportunity to take stock of the family. He had just assumed that if anyone was critically injured he would have been told.

"Everyone's fine," Winry assured him. "None of the children were in that part of the building when it went. They're home with Deanna. The last time I saw Ian and Bonnie they were helping Mrs. Horn clean up her antique store. Ian said they would be home for dinner. Reichart and Cassie are still at the hospital. Lily and Randy slept in this morning, so they weren't even in town when it hit."

"Slept in… right." Ed grinned. If they'd just been sleeping, he'd eat his coat. Though being college students, he knew they _were_ also taking advantage of sleeping in.

"They were helping clean up the fair grounds for this evening's festivities when I saw them," Winry clarified, nudging him in the side.

Ed shook his head. "Nothing stops a Resembool tradition. You won't feel bad if we just stay home tonight though, will you?" he asked. "I hate to sound old, but I'm pretty worn out."

"That's all right," Al grinned. "I'm pretty worn out too."

"Oh _that_ makes me feel better."

Winry shook her head. "If you two boys don't stop Elicia and I won't make dinner."

"Yes ma'am," Ed and Al replied in chorus.


	17. Chapter 17

**October 17** **th** **, 1985**

While Aldon knew he had slept the night before, it didn't feel like it as he crawled out of bed the next morning and dragged into the kitchen far too early for his tastes. He'd been up until almost midnight at town hall, working late on a comprehensive plan for handling the damage to the town. Thankfully minimal damage seemed to have been done to the town infrastructure. Water was working. Electricity was working. Most of the damage was structural.

Only the smell of rich coffee—and his strong sense of duty—was enough to lure him out of bed.

Cassie was already up, dressed, and had the coffee on. As he came into the kitchen she dropped another set of strips of bacon into a frying pan, and they began to hiss and sizzle. There was already a stack of pancakes on a plate.

"You know it's just us this morning, right, Cass?" Aldon asked as he dropped down in his customary chair and reached for the cup of coffee. He took a sip; thick, rich, and packed with sugar.

Cassie nodded without turning her eyes from the meat. "Yes, Don. I'm aware of that. I just figure you're not going to eat again until dinner, or possibly not until midnight, so you might as well get one solid meal in today."

"You make a surprisingly good case for stuffing myself this morning." Aldon reached for the syrup and butter to add it to his pancakes. "I knew I loved you for a reason."

"And here I thought you kept me around for the sex." Cassie glanced over her shoulder and winked at him.

If she hadn't been cooking bacon, Aldon might have taken that moment to show her how right she was. Instead, he poured the syrup, though he would have willingly admitted that he liked watching his wife—anywhere, not just in the kitchen. For a brief moment, alone without anyone else in the house, he could pretend it was back in those early, hotly romantic days when they had first gotten together at Briggs. Though he had to concede that Cassie was even more attractive now than when they were nineteen; shapelier curves for one thing. Her hair wasn't quite as long as it had been then, falling loose to just above her shoulder blades. It had also, he'd noticed, gotten a little darker brown, though now it was streaked with occasional wisps of silver. He could watch his wife all day.

Too bad he had to go back to work. With no one else in the house, they were alone for the first time in…well, years. Aldon couldn't remember the last time he and Cassie had been truly alone in their own house. Though since Callie had moved to Central, it was just them and Yurian. That turned his thoughts elsewhere as he started to eat. "Mom said that Urey and Yurian took Raina home last night."

"You think they both stayed over?" Cassie asked.

"It's certainly looks like it."

"They could have gone back to Ed and Winry's later."

"Doubt it." Aldon smiled, though it quickly turned into a yawn.

Cassie slid the slices of bacon onto a waiting plate and turned around, serving several onto the side of Aldon's stack of pancakes. "I have the feeling you approve."

"Urey is the happiest he's been in years, and he and Yurian are finally a family. That's more than enough reason to hope they work out permanently." Aldon frankly didn't see any reason to be worried about his son's love life. They were two grown adults—well older than he and Cassie had been—and he'd begun to believe that Urey would spend the rest of his life in a depressed haze until a few months ago. Raina wasn't the first girl who had expressed interest. She was just the only one Urey had even bothered to notice back.

Cassie joined him at the table, kissing him briefly before sitting back and filling her own plate. "She's a lovely woman," she agreed, nodding, though she didn't smile. "Am I terrible for feeling like this is a better relationship for him than his marriage was?"

Aldon didn't like to speak ill of the dead any more than anyone else, but he shook his head. "No. Actually, Urey said almost that to me a few days ago, after her parents first arrived. He thought that it's what she would have wanted, for him to find someone else, so he and Yurian weren't alone." He reached out and patted her hand. "I'd like to think that, if she'd lived, Cayla and Urey would have been happy, but they didn't get that chance. While I can only imagine what Urey's been through, I can't even begin to imagine how unlikely it would be that I could ever find someone like you twice in my lifetime, and it makes me grateful I've never had to."

Cassie's cheeks glowed with pleasure. "You know, I'm going to miss having Yurian in the house."

Aldon smiled before turned back to his food. He did have places to be. "I will too."

* * *

"So, if school is closed today, what are you going to do?" Urey asked Raina as they and Yurian ate breakfast in her kitchen. He had work, and he seriously doubted he would be short of it today, but the school had been declared closed for the rest of the week. While the school children probably didn't mind, he knew that didn't make it a vacation for anyone else.

"Well, I can't get back into my room until they declare the building safe, so I suppose Yurian and I will have to entertain ourselves today. Won't that be fun?" she looked at Yurian, who was happily eating the fresh homemade oatmeal with fruit that she had made for them.

Yurian nodded. "Yeah! What are we gonna do?"

"Well, I do need to visit my parents and see how Dad's doing, but after that, maybe we can find somewhere to play that's out of the way. Your friends and cousins will be out of school too."

"Okay." Yurian seemed to accept that as a good plan, and went back to eating.

When they were done, Urey helped Raina with the dishes while Yurian put away the pillows and blankets they had borrowed for the night. Yurian had slept on the chair. Urey had—ostensibly—slept on the couch. "He's got clean clothes at Mom and Dad's. You might want to swing by there first. You can borrow my key. I doubt they'll be home with everything going on."

"I can take care of one well-behaved boy for a day I should think," Raina smiled as she dried the plates. "It's not as if I don't have experience."

"You're pretty good at taking care of badly-behaved boys too," Urey commented, stepping up behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist.

That got him a wet towel in the face. "That one I'm still learning as we go." She turned around when he let go of her. "Thanks, Urey. I didn't want to be alone last night."  
He could understand why. He'd had a time keeping her from fretting the whole evening about her father's health, and had only convinced her around midnight that she could go to sleep, and if anything happened at the hospital, a doctor or her mother would _call._ "I'd never leave you," he replied softly.

"All done!" Yurian interrupted the moment by bouncing into the room. "I folded blankets all by myself!"

Raina winked at Urey before turning and beaming at his son. "I'm impressed! Did you put the throw pillows back on the couch?"

Yurian nodded and grabbed her hand. "I did. Just like you had them. Come see!"

"See you later," Urey promised, feeling a twinge of regret that he couldn't stay with them for the rest of the day. He turned and slipped out the door. Once out, he broke into a brisk walk, which eventually turned into a jog. He was going to have to hurry to get home, shower, change, and still get to work on time.

* * *

"This really wasn't how I thought we'd be spending our down time," Ian commented as he and Bonnie worked in his grandmother's kitchen, making lunch. They had opted to free up his grandparents to work in town over trying to be helpful themselves without a clear idea of where to go today.

Bonnie smiled. "And here I thought you liked cooking."

"You know what I mean." Ian resisted the urge to toss a grape at her, though he mimed the action anyway. "I was figuring on a much less exciting trip. Just the festival and time hanging out with my family. Normally that's all there is to it. Not unlike visiting your parents."

"Except that none of your siblings have a killer celebrity crush on _me_ ," Bonnie pointed out.

"Does she even know we're dating?" Ian asked, curiously. He knew Bonnie had informed her parents—quietly—that they were seeing each other. Her parents wouldn't tell a soul without Bonnie's permission.

"No. Mom and I thought she might die if we told her." Bonnie pulled out a knife and started slicing tomatoes. "I will tell her, eventually, just…"

"Not until we're ready for the entire world and your home town to know about it?" Ian decided not to point out that if Resembool knew about it, it might actually leak to the outside world. Though, at least here, his celebrity was not likely to cause leaks to major magazines. Gossip was not something that got published in the little newspapers in the area.

"Am I being too paranoid?" Bonnie asked him, looking a little guilty. "I just don't want the whole world in our business."

Ian started washing lettuce for the salad. "Honestly, I don't think you're overreacting. It's a hazard of the job, everyone's nose being up where it doesn't belong. I'll just be happy when all of our friends and family know." They weren't exactly sneaking around, but at work in particular they had been as professional as possible, keeping their friendship as outwardly back to 'as it had been' as possible. Once the magazines got a hold of it, there would be minimal privacy until the fans and the news media got bored with them.

"Well your parents seem to like me all right."

"All right?" Ian looked over his shoulder. "They think you're great."

"You think so?"

"It's obvious. Seriously, they're polite people, but they're not actors. If they didn't like you they'd be well… more formal, more politely distant. But they wouldn't fake liking you. That's just now how my family is."

Bonnie smiled, relaxing visibly. "Mine too."

"I remember. Your father asked me about my intentions towards you."

"He did?"

"Yeah, well, at the time there wasn't much to tell, was there?"

"No," she agreed. "But your answer must have been good, because they were perfectly happy to hear that we're seeing each other."

"Nice to know the next time I see them I don't have to worry about getting dumped in a back field."

"Oh, that depends on what I tell Daddy between now and then."

Ian set down the lettuce and turned around, reaching out to slide his arms around her from behind—after checking to be sure she had put down the tomato knife. "Oh? Should I be worried?"

Bonnie jumped slightly, then relaxed in his arms. "Not so far."

"That's good to kn—" Ian paused as he felt something vibrating, and his stomach sank. Not again!

This time it only lasted a few seconds, but it was noticeable enough that Bonnie had turned and was clinging to him, eyes wide. "Another one?"

"Felt like it." Ian let go of her and went to the radio. While Resembool had grown, they didn't have their own local television station. Local news still went out first by radio.

"-felt that here at the station," the announcer's voice was saying as Ian found the right station. "We're awaiting a report on any new damage and will update listeners as soon as we have more information."

Ian bit back his frustration. Of course they didn't know anything yet, but that meant he didn't know if the damage was worse than yesterday or not. Feeling it from here didn't tell him if it was smaller, or just centered somewhere different. He wished he knew more about earthquakes, but it had been years since he'd studied earth science in high school.

Bonnie didn't looked thrilled either. "We'll just have to wait," she said. "Let's finish making lunch. Everyone will need to eat, no matter what's going on. By the time we're done, we should know something."

Ian nodded slowly. He wasn't a hero, he just played one a lot on screen. If there was something he could actually do to help, his father or Grandpa or someone would call.

* * *

The only good thing about that afternoon, Aldon thought, was that the second earthquake had been small enough that no more buildings had collapsed. Already damaged buildings hadn't gotten much worse either. In fact, the worst reported injury was a badly cut hand by someone trying to pick up a broken vase from the floor. The nerves of the locals were the most shaken thing in the area.

The government had also promised to send out a team to investigate the matter, as he discovered when he got a call from East City Headquarters. They weren't the only town dealing with damage in the East, though it was reportedly worse north of Resembool. In fact, it sounded like the worst of it probably wasn't being caused by local mining or oil operations, but Aldon had determined it prudent to investigate that anyway. He had sent a team consisting of Uncle Alphonse, two of the townsfolk who had worked the old Resembool mines and oil pumps back in the day when the ruling had been made, as well as Bobby Lyster, who owned the last remaining ore mine left in the Resembool area.  
He had been a little surprised that his father hadn't objected to being asked to stay in town, but Ed had simply nodded in agreement and gone off to help with rebuilding and strengthening a lot of the buildings in town that needed it.

Better yet, when he returned three hours later, his father had brought coffee and doughnuts from the bakery down the street.

"They were grateful I repaired their second story," Ed grinned as he offered a drink and pastry to Aldon.

"Their entire second story?" Aldon looked at his father as he took the paper coffee cup and thickly-glazed chocolate doughnut. Cassie had been right, he hadn't had anything to eat since breakfast.

Ed shrugged and dropped into one of the chairs on the other side of the Mayor's desk. "I put an entire demolished Inn back together in about ten minutes once, repairing their roof, a few joists, and altering the structure of the concrete to have a little more flexibility so it doesn't crack in another quake only took a few minutes. Half of it was figuring out what I wanted to do with the concrete."

Aldon knew that, despite his father's tendency towards hyperbole, most of the stories he had heard of his father and Uncle Al's exploits when they were younger were entirely true. He just shook his head, and smiled. "Can you do that to other substances too? Make them earthquake resistant? That would be really useful around here."

Ed nodded and drank his coffee. "All I really did is make it slightly more elastic. That way, when it shakes, it wiggles a bit and settles back in place instead of cracking. It should hold up to anything a bit stronger than what we had yesterday. Today's little shake would seem like nothing. They'll feel the building move, but we shouldn't have as much breakage. I'd like to do that to the entire school, and maybe a few other buildings, this week, though it would go a lot faster with Al helping. More alchemists would be even better, but I'll take what I can get."

"Well we might get some help before it's over," Aldon told him. "East City Headquarters said that since the State is declaring this an emergency due to the damage in several towns out here, they're sending aid and officers to check it out and see what they can do."

He didn't have to tell his father what kind of officers that meant. Ed nodded, knowingly. "I wonder which State Alchemists we'll be seeing this time?"

 **Oct 18** **th** **, 1985**

"Didn't we just leave this party?" Trevor Bass commented as Ted Elric and the rest of his team looked at the map of the Eastern region on the wall behind the Brigadier General.  
Ted watched as Closson smiled smugly. The Shock Alchemist nodded. "That is, precisely, why you're the team we want for this, Sifter. You came here from East City Command. Proteus and Genesis are both from different parts of the region. Given your areas of experience, you're the best team for the job. I know you just got back into town yesterday, but you'll be on the train East this afternoon."

Ted nodded along with everyone else. They had just spent three weeks down in the most South-Western corner of Amestris, along the Aerugo border, hunting down a smuggling ring. They'd succeeded, and even found the primary warehouse being used to stash most of the stolen goods, but it had turned into quite the fire fight before it was all over. Ted had been looking forward to taking it a little easier for a few days.

"What's our objective?" the Deluge Alchemist, Rochelle Wales, asked.

"Information gathering, offering assistance where possible," Closson replied, he gestured to the several bright yellow triangles on the map. "These are the towns that have reported damage from the earthquakes. If you do happen to figure out a way to minimize damage, or even why these are happening, and maybe how to get them to stop again, that would be ideal, but I think we're all aware that stopping them may not be within our capabilities."

"Glad we're in agreement on that," Ted quipped. Stopping forces of nature might sound like a great tale to tell later, but he had a feeling they were a little outclassed by something as massive as an earthquake.

"You'll be starting in Farnell," Closson pointed to the next-to-Northernmost village on the map, just north of the train route to East City. "The rains started early there this year, and the quake set off the mudslides earlier than usual. Thankfully nothing's hit a town directly so far, but some of the outlying neighborhoods were damaged. Then you'll be working your way south, stopping in Varn, Carrnool, and ending here, in Resembool."

 _Home sheepy home._ He'd missed the festival, but it looked like Ted was going to get to visit after all. "Has anyone looked into the mining or oil operations in those areas?" Ted asked.

Deluge gave him a _why are you asking that question_ look.

Closson, however, nodded, looking mildly surprised. "Yes, actually. The mayor of Resembool sent a team out to investigate the matter yesterday. Preliminary reports state that the new oil operations in that area are drilling within accepted parameters and haven't gone deeper than local regulations dictate."

Interesting. Ted managed not to smile when Tore called his father "the mayor."

By the time they left the meeting, Ted was looking forward to the assignment. For once, he wasn't going to be the least experienced member of the team at something. While he knew they were all supposed to be generally equal, he was the youngest, and the lowest ranking member, and he couldn't help but feel like he was there to prove something to someone… and not himself. It was easy to see Felix as an equal, since he always treated him like one. Bass was his father's age, and Wales was too intense. There were days he didn't even really remember she was a woman, mostly because it was safer not to think of her as one when she was barking orders.

"I guess we're off and running again," Bass commented glibly as they walked down the hall back to their office, a few doors down.

Ted nodded and grinned. "No rest for the talented."

Felix sighed. "Yeah, but Kena's going to be so mad. Less than forty-eight hours at home this month, and now we'll be gone who knows how long."

"Hazard of the job there, Genesis," Bass chuckled. "She knew it when she married you."

"Doesn't mean I don't owe her when we get back." Felix shook his head. "Leaving her home with the kids for weeks at a time."

"Now you know why I'm not married."

Ted snickered. "Funny, Bass, I thought you told us it was because you couldn't choose between _all_ your devoted girlfriends." Of which, he knew, the Sifter Alchemist had only one at the moment, and it wasn't serious.

"Enough gossip, ladies," Deluge preceded them into the office. "We've got a mission to prepare for."

"As if we've forgotten." Bass never seemed to get ruffled by her acerbic tones or all-business attitude. In fact, he seemed to enjoy them. "Don't worry your head about it. We'll be ready to go. It'll be good to see the East again, even if it's no vacation."

"You got a girl out there too?" Felix teased.

"Yup," Bass grinned broadly. "My mother."

 **October 19** **th** **, 1985**

Alyse hadn't allowed Charlie to get out of school to keep her company, though she couldn't stop Cal from driving her to her first therapy appointment. Dr. Martins would be overseeing the chemical treatments, which Alyse kept separate from her other treatments by referring to those with Dr. Xinai as _alchemical_ treatments. The chemical therapy scared her far more than the alchemist. The chemicals, as she understood them, would kill the cancer cells, but they were basically carefully concocted poisons, in very small doses.

She hadn't slept the night before, and as she settled into a reclining chair in what amounted to a small, carpeted hospital room, she wondered what sitting here for the next several hours as the treatment was slowly dripped into her veins would be like. There was a novel in her purse, but she wasn't sure she would be able to focus on it.

Cal sat next to her, holding her hand as they hooked up the IV in her other arm. He had said a lot of supportive things in the car on the way over, but there didn't seem to be much more to say now. Alyse was glad he had stopped. Yes, this probably wouldn't be as traumatic as her mind made it out to be, but everything she knew about these treatments made them unpleasant at best.

"I'll be back before it's time for you to go," Cal promised. She had told him he had to go to work, but he had insisted he drive both directions.

"I'll be waiting right here," Alyse assured him, trying to summon something resembling a smile. She didn't think she succeeded.

Her clue that the IV had started was a sudden warm, rushing sensation that filled her, not quite like a hot flash, but tingling, and it didn't stop. Nothing unexpected, but disconcerting none the less. Then her eyelids felt heavy.

Alyse blinked.

The sunlight coming through the window was pointing the opposite direction, and had turned notably golden.

"What the—"

"You're awake."

Alyse looked over at Cal, who was still sitting next to her, holding her hand. "Did I sleep?"

"All day," Cal smiled. "Or so they tell me. I've only been here a few minutes."

She didn't remember falling asleep. Alyse looked over at Dr. Martins who was coming in the door. "Well?"

"The treatment went fine," Dr. Martins said. "Falling asleep is not an uncommon reaction. The drug we use to keep patients from having allergic reactions to the treatment tends to make people drowsy."

As she said it, Alyse remembered having been told that during their previous meeting, but there had been so much to remember it had fled her mind. "So I might sleep through all of these?"

"It's possible," Dr. Martins nodded as she wrote something on a chart and then came over to her.

Alyse felt a moment of irritation, which she decided was irrational in itself since she should just be grateful she hadn't been bored and uncomfortable for the past eight hours.

The tingling had subsided, and other than feeling tired, as if she had just worked a hard day, and hungry, she felt all right for the most part. "Can we go home now?" she asked Cal.

"Of course." He kissed her and, as soon as she was no longer hooked to the IV, he helped her to her feet. "Charlie's making dinner."

It only took a couple of minutes to finish up. Alyse would be back in two weeks, though she would be starting her bi-weekly appointments with Dr. Xinai on Monday.

She decided not to question the intelligence of leaving Charlie home alone, likely with the stove. He was almost sixteen-years-old; a sophomore in high school. Surely he could handle dinner alone.

"So, how was your day?" she asked Cal on the drive home. Hers had been spent asleep, but that didn't mean other things hadn't happened. She would much rather think about what other people had been up to.

"Mostly the usual," Cal replied, "Paperwork and politics. The alchemists heading East to check out the Earthquake emergency left this morning on the train. I didn't see them, but Tore said Ted was pretty eager about the assignment."

"He's eager about every assignment." At least, that was what it seemed to Alyseeach time they had these conversations. "He wants to prove that he's as reliable and capable as he is talented." Given the near-disaster he had barely averted—mostly with Roy Mustang's help—in Xing, she could understand why they wanted him locked in with a team and not going off solo. He had a lot of Elric in him that harkened back to Uncle Edward's brilliant but occasionally crazy way of getting things done. "Is he even close to getting promoted?"

"Closer than he knows," was Cal's cryptic reply. He didn't say anything else, which meant that he couldn't discuss the matter further with her. Alyse didn't press. If he couldn't say anything, that meant the topic was actually under discussion, and promotions were not something to be discussed with civilians before they happened. He did, however, shift to other elements of the day, and seemed happy to fill the car with general chatter while she listened the rest of the way home. That was exactly how she wanted it.

"So, what are we having for dinner?" Alyse asked as Cal gave her his arm and they went up the stairs from the garage to the living room.

"Grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup," Cal smiled. "I didn't figure it would be wise to leave him in charge of anything too time consuming."

The house smelled all right when they got upstairs, with the distinct smell of cheese and soup.

"Food's almost ready!" Charlie called without leaving the kitchen.

"Hungry?" Cal asked her.

"Famished," Alyse replied, choosing not to admit that the smell, which normally would have been delicious, had given her a slight twinge of nausea. She really hoped that didn't start this soon.

"Great," Charlie greeted them with a smile she knew was meant to cheer her spirits. Her son had been doing his best to be on his best behavior ever since the diagnosis: doing his homework without complaint, chores, even going out of his way to be extra helpful. She knew it was because he was worried, and didn't feel there was much he could do. "I hope you like it, Mom."

"I'm sure I will," Alyse assured him, giving her son a hug once he had removed the pan from the stove. It turned out to be tasty too, if not quite as much as she normally would have enjoyed it, but she decided that was not the food's fault, or the chef. By the time dinner was over, she felt decidedly groggy, and definitely off. So, after making sure she thanked Charlie again for making dinner, and after assuring him that her day had been surprisingly uneventful and she had slept through the treatment which had gone very well-according to the doctor- she went upstairs, took a quick shower, and curled up in her softest pajamas. The next thing she knew, the clock read three hours later, and Cal was curling up in bed behind her. "I'm sorry."

"What for?" Cal asked as he wrapped his arms around her. "None of this is your fault, and you made me proud today. I've seen people fall apart in the face of less."

"I slept the whole day."

"I mean this morning, and after," Cal didn't let her brush it off. "I know you're scared. We both are, but you held it together with your usual grace and charm."

Alyse decided to believe him. She didn't know if it was true, but she liked his take on it better than her memory of being too scared to say much of anything. "Thank you, Cal. I don't think I could have made it through today without you… or Charlie."

"We are here to provide for your every need and desire," Cal assured her, kissing her cheek as he cuddled gently closer. "We'll beat this together."

His firm assurance followed her into sleep.


	18. Chapter 18

**October 22** **nd** **, 1985**

Franz had meant what he had said about James and Krista making the house their own, and had insisted on moving his own things into the downstairs guest suite, giving them the master bedroom. His intentions to move out had been slowly worn down by his son and new daughter-in-law. Trisha and Roy had also vocally insisted that him moving into a little apartment alone was not only unacceptable for the President of the Military, they wouldn't let their father do it.

Still, it was a little surreal to have James and Krista here on their official move-in day. They had waited while some updates were made to the house before bringing in either of their own things. Given their current living arrangements, they hadn't had too much to bring in, thankfully.

Franz had simply cooperated over the past weeks as several rooms got their first new coats of paint or new wallpaper in at least two decades. All of the wooden floors had been stripped, re-stained, and polished until they shone like new. The same had been done for the kitchen cabinets, which were now a lighter, warmer shade. The hardware had been updated to something newer, but classic in style. A new lighting fixture over the dining room table replaced the one that had been there since Gracia and Maes Hughes had owned the house. Franz did not object to any of the changes so far. The house needed updating, and it looked fresh and ready to be lived in again. The carpets that remained had been deep-cleaned, but not replaced.

Today was rearranging furniture to make room for everything day. Before lunch, everything arrived, and Franz helped rearrange the living room to make room for James' favorite leather two-seater sofa, which was the only good piece of furniture that he'd had in his little staff apartment. This looked quite nice with Krista's dark blue velvety reclining rocking chair in the room that had newly been painted a light blue instead of the old neutral cream. New curtains-white shears with a medium blue satin valance- gave the room a more open, airier feel than the older, darker curtains had. They left one of the older couches in the room, but the oldest one was going to be donated to charity.

The upstairs rooms were rearranged to compensate for the loss of the downstairs guest room and full bath that Franz had claimed-and had painted a deep, sage green.

The old home-office stayed as such, but was rearranged to accommodate three people, where it had once been for two. Trisha's old bedroom became a guest room, and the spare room that had once been Ian's, went back to being temporary storage of various boxes of supplies. James' old room was, ostensibly, a spare room, but as Franz came upstairs after pausing to get a cup of iced tea, he noticed that it was almost entirely empty. It was also one of the few rooms that had not yet been painted. "No plan for this room yet?" he asked.

"Not quite," James grinned, shrugging. "More of a "we haven't finished deciding what the final plan will be." We figure whenever we have our first kid, this will be the nursery."

Franz wasn't surprised. They were old enough that starting a family soon was something he had suspected was on their agenda. "And you're planning to wait how long to make that determination?" he teased.

James and Krista shared a look. "Not too long," James answered. "We'd rather not wait much longer, though."  
So they weren't expecting _yet_ , Franz read that, but they were probably trying or would be soon. That was fine with him. He clapped his son on the shoulder. "Well, I look forward to a house filled with more adorable grandchildren. Just make sure I get the memo when we need to start decorating."  
James sniggered. "Yes, Sir."

* * *

Ian was having mixed feelings about the fact that he and Bonnie would soon be returning to Central. He had enjoyed being able to spend as much time with her as he wanted without her being tense about their colleagues—or the press—finding out about their relationship. He hadn't seen Bonnie so relaxed in a long time, and he was more than a little relieved that she got along so well with his family.

He just hoped that the level of comfort their relationship had reached didn't vanish when they got back to work. Ian also felt guilty leaving Resembool when they were in the middle of earthquake repairs. While there had only been one other little quake, and it hadn't done much more than make things shiver for a few seconds, everyone was on edge, and there was still a lot to do.

Yet here he was, packing for the train that would take him back to Central. He knew they couldn't stay longer, but it still felt wrong to him when his family was so involved in repairing the town and taking care of everyone.

The house was quiet as his packed. Bonnie was down the hall in her room, he thought, doing her own packing. Granny and Grandpa were in town. Lily and Randy had already gone back to East City. Urey had gotten off work early and was with Raina, seeing her parents off on the train. Her father had recovered enough that he had only spent a couple of days in the hospital, and they had remained for the rest of their scheduled stay.

Even though it was getting close to dinner time, Ian didn't expect to see Urey around; not when Raina's parents were finally gone.

"It's going to be quiet without you around." Urey surprised him from the doorway.

"Are you complaining or gloating?" Ian asked as he finished folding his blue shirt and putting it away.

"Well, since—for once—you didn't try to steal my date, I think I'll miss you."

Ian smiled. "Even if I'd wanted to, it wouldn't have worked. She's totally into you, Rey, and I'm happy for you." His brother deserved to be happy, and to have a woman as loyal and capable as Raina in his life. "Besides, I brought my own girlfriend."

Urey chuckled. "She's a nice woman, Ian; intelligent, down-to-earth. It's nice to know at least one of you has common sense."

"She definitely keeps me grounded." Ian wasn't offended by his brother's teasing. Much as he loved his brother, their past had always been a bit tense, particularly when it came to girls. They had finally been getting along really well until Cayla died. "Having her in my life is the best thing that's ever happened to me, and I'll do everything I can to make sure I don't screw this up."

"Give yourself a little credit," Urey suggested. "Just make sure you're honest with yourself too. If you change yourself too much to make a girl happy, even if you do it willingly, it's not always the right thing to do."

Ian turned around, and from the look on Urey's face, he could tell his brother spoke from his own experience. "I'll keep that in mind."

"You seem to be doing okay so far," Urey grinned. "You're _you_ around Bonnie—the you I've known our whole lives—and that seems to be when she's most relaxed and happy."

Ian hadn't even considered that. While he had always had a strong sense of self—you had to, not to get lost in acting—he was also fully aware of how changeable human nature could be, and how much choice was involved in how people chose to behave in different situations. With Bonnie, especially here at home, he hadn't given much thought to anything other than living in the moment and enjoying her company. "I hadn't noticed," he admitted. "That's really good to know. Thanks, Rey."

"Does it make up for the time I punched you in the face?"

"If things work out with me and Bonnie, then yes. If not, I owe you one."

 **October 23** **rd** **, 1985**

"If I'd wanted to be a construction worker, I'd have stayed in my home town," Bass quipped as he finished transmuting someone's collapsed front porch back into place.

Ted stepped back from the corner of the house he had just finished repairing the same way. "That's the glamor of being a State Alchemist, Sifter. We're versatile enough we can fix or solve just about anything." At least, as long as the people believed it, which was what seemed to matter more than the reality. The government had spent decades working on building trust and a sense of well-being regarding State Alchemists after their disastrous mishandling back in the early part of the century.

"Well I hope Genesis and Deluge are having better luck convincing the mayor we can't stop earthquakes from happening," Bass grumbled. "I could have explained it well enough."

"Like you did to the mayor of Farnell?" Ted managed to refrain from chuckling. Bass was certainly the best expert in their group on the earth and how it worked, given his alchemical specialty, however he didn't have the patience to deal with ignorance, idiocy, or people who just didn't get it. The mayor of Farnell had been one of those people who couldn't understand that alchemists couldn't just _fix_ the earthquakes with alchemy. The mayor of Varn, where they were now, was only a little more familiar with the limits of alchemy. So while Deluge and Genesis investigated the local mining and oil companies and spoke with the government officials, Ted and Bass had spent most of the last day-and-a-half helping repair various businesses, homes, and broken objects around town.

Bass shrugged. "Yeah, well, he was a fool."

"No argument," Ted shook his head. "I just hope they find out something useful." They had turned over nothing much in the last town. The companies were operating according to regulations, and none had done anything new or different recently that might be a likely cause of earthquakes. "Okay, what's next on our list?"

Bass looked at the written on and much-folded piece of paper that was today's repair agenda. They had already made repairs to the local medical clinic, green grocer, school house, three shops, and half a dozen private homes. "Well, since we've finished this neighborhood, next we're supposed to help repair the indoor pool in the local community center. Apparently it cracked right down the middle and the local school swim team hasn't been able to practice in days."

"Well, can't have the kids losing swim meets, can we?" Bass quipped. He glanced up at the sky. "Come on, let's go. We've still got a couple of hours before we're supposed to meet up. It won't take us that long to fix a pool."

Ted fell in step beside him as they made their way up the street. He smiled, and waved at one of the women in the neighborhood who was waving at them from her front yard, where her two young children were playing. They had fixed a large crack in the foundation of her house earlier that day. Missy Volkiss; a young, pretty widow, was his age. Her children, a girl and a boy, were three and one. Her husband had died last year in a mining accident.

Ted had remained strictly professional. He wasn't here to pick up girls, no matter how pretty or friendly they were. Or how much they smiled at him. He was leaving in the morning with no intention of coming back in the near future.

Though he was looking forward to a couple more days down the road, when they got to Resembool. He knew, from calling home, that his family was all right and the town was in decent shape. In fact, by the time they got there, there wouldn't be much left to repair, thanks to Grandpa Ed, Great-Uncle Alphonse, and Urey. The investigation would also be pretty complete by then, which meant that their visit would be mostly a formality, and collecting the information to add to their own. Not that Ted was expecting to glean much from any of it. From what his father had said, everything seemed on the up-and-up around Resembool as well. The earthquakes may just be caused by the natural shifting of the earth, and there was little to be done about that.

This assignment might just turn out to be less exciting than the last, which was all right by Ted, if a little anticlimactic. He didn't miss getting shot at, but the adrenaline had certainly made the story better in the telling afterwards. Somehow "and then we repaired the pool" just didn't have much suspense.

 **October 24** **th** **, 1985**

Ethan knew dinner was going to be late the moment he came in the door after work and found both Lia and Aeddan at the telephone, doing their best to both listen at once. That meant one of two things: either Eamon or Lily was on the phone. He didn't ask who it was, since the conversation gave him that in a moment. Only Eamon would be talking about the ocean and surfing. He had mentioned he would be going out to the southern islands off Creta's coast for his fall vacation. Ethan put his head in with everyone else, so he could get his ear near enough to hear.

"-didn't do so great the first time, but I got the hang of it after a few tries," Eamon explained, sounding proud of himself. "At least Luci was impressed."

"And of course, impressing the girl is always the goal," Ethan announced his presence with his teasing comment. Lucilla was Eamon's new girlfriend, though what Ethan knew about her was limited to the fact she was tall, dark haired, hot, Cretan, and majoring in botany.

Eamon laughed. "It was worth falling on my face a few times, I'll admit. She's still better at it than I am."

"So have you done anything interesting besides trying to show off?" Lia asked curiously.

"Of course, I have. The Laos Island plant and animal preserve has some of the coolest wildlife I've ever gotten to see up close. The next time you and Dad go on vacation you should really try the islands," Eamon said insistently. "They let the whole lot of us take a behind-the-exhibits tour since we're all zoology or botany students with the university. I got to help one of the veterinarians give baby jaguar cubs their physical exam."

That did sound like a good time! "Come away with all your fingers?"

"Yeah, they weren't big enough to try to eat anyone yet. No teeth. I got licked a lot though."

"By your _girlfriend?_ " Aeddan asked.

"By the jaguars. Grow up twerp," Eamon retorted, though there was long-suffering patience in the older brother's voice.

"Enough wasting long distance calls on chit-chat," Ethan cut in. "Glad you had a good time."

"Don't worry, Dad," Eamon sounded amused. "I'm keeping up with my classes too."

"Well, that wasn't what I was going to say, but it's good to know."

Everyone chuckled.

Once Eamon had filled them in on the rest of "Life as a collegiate scholar" it was time for dinner. "It's nice to hear from at least one of our grown children," Ethan commented as he started washing the vegetables Lia had laid out to make salad.

Lia chuckled, and started slicing the onion he handed her way. "You'd complain even if they both called every week," she chided him gently. "Lily called a couple of weeks ago."

"That doesn't mean I don't miss her," Ethan pointed out. He wasn't really mad, but griping made him feel a little better about missing having his daughter around. She was studying, and married, and performing when she had the opportunity. She was, in some ways, far busier than Eamon.

That didn't mean he wasn't allowed to miss her.

"Is there anything to eat?" Aeddan asked as he came in, having set the table.

"You mean other than dinner, which will be ready in half an hour?" Ethan asked, eyeing his youngest with mild disbelief.

"Well… yeah. I'm starving."

Ethan refrained from rolling his eyes. He could see Lia's shoulders shaking with silent chuckles, and knew what she was thinking. "You can wait like the rest of us."

"You'll regret it if I die of starvation."

"You will not die of starvation," Ethan assured him. "You ate half of the chicken your Mom roasted yesterday _by yourself._ "

"Yeah. See, I left you and Mom, half," Aeddan quipped.

Ethan sighed, shook his head, and shoved a large carrot at his son. "Eat this."

Aeddan took the carrot, looked dejected, then grinned broadly and walked out, chewing the end off the carrot.

Lia chuckled.

"Enough out of you," Ethan commented, though he had to admit it was pretty funny.

"Well it's not like we don't know where he gets it," Lia replied.

"I was never _that_ hungry."

"Whatever you say, Ethan."

 **October 26** **th** **, 1985**

"Doesn't look like we'll have much to do here," Felix commented to Ted as they got off the train at Resembool station.

"Resembool has its own alchemists," Ted quipped, grinning as they walked through the station and out onto the road. It was just him and Felix. Deluge and Bass were still at the town north of them, handling the last things there. Ted and Felix had come on ahead, mostly just so they could get the information Resembool had and add it to the official report.

Felix snickered "So does Xenotime."

"Yeah. Lucky for your family these earthquakes aren't reaching that far." Ted led the way, heading up the hill into the main part of town.  
Felix looked around curiously as they walked up the hill, past houses, and shops, then eventually streets branched off. "Somehow, I always figured Resembool was smaller than this," he admitted.

Ted nodded. "It used to be. Grandma says when she and Grandpa were kids, there was only this main road into town, and then the main square was only two blocks deep. Other than that, it's all farms and the mines. It's grown a lot though, even since I was a kid." He nodded towards the city hall. "There's our first stop." It was the middle of the day, which meant his father was almost certainly either there, or they would know where to find him.

They got lucky. The secretary at the front desk recognized Ted on sight, smiled, and waved them on in. "The Mayor is expecting you."

Ted chuckled. "He'd better be."

His father looked up from his desk as they entered, and a smile spread across his tired face. He stood and met them half-way across the room. There was no formality as he enfolded Ted in a bone-crunching hug, then turned and shook hands enthusiastically with Felix. "I hope you had a good trip," he commented as he gestured towards chairs, and a pitcher of iced tea and glasses sitting on his desk, clearly waiting. "Please, get comfortable. There's no reason to stand while we talk."

"The trip was fine, Dad," Ted assured him, though he certainly wasn't about to turn down one of the old, comfortable chairs after train-seats and walking his feet off for days on end. "It doesn't look like there's much for us to do here."

"Yeah, Dad, Al, and your brother have taken care of most of the repairs," Aldon nodded, sliding a stack of paper across the way. "Alphonse headed up a team to go talk to the local miners and the oil companies, but no one's breaking any rules. You're welcome to tour the facilities yourself, of course."

Ted nodded. For government purposes, they needed to at least double check the facts. "And nothing here looks towards anything other than natural shifting of a fault for cause?"

His father shook his head. "Not so far. Have you found anything elsewhere to suggest another answer?"

Ted shook his head as he picked up the papers his father had slid them, and looked them over. "Not really. Everything checked out there too, and none of the geological data we've gotten since then does anything more than point to the mountains down around this area, and we know there's a small fault line running through the area." He leaned over, looking at the map splayed across the desk, weighted down by stacks of paper and an actual paperweight. Felix leaned in close as well as Ted traced the line of the fault on the map. "Everything says the epicenter seems to be right in this area."

"There's nothing on the map there," Felix pointed out. "No oil rigs, no mines…nothing. Not unless something's been left off the map."

"No, they're all marked." Aldon tapped the nearest site with the end of his pen. "This was the first place Alphonse and the investigation team inspected." The location was farthest up one of the passes that ran relatively deep into the mountains, a few miles outside of town.

"Sounds like a place to start." Felix nodded thoughtfully. "How long will it take?"

"Maybe a couple of hours." Ted shrugged. "We could get it done before dinner." No time like the present. Then he could enjoy a fantastic home cooked meal with his parents for the first time in forever.

Aldon smiled. "Great. I'll tell your mother to expect you both for dinner then."

"Where are we lodging while we're here?" Felix asked.

"Didn't I just tell you?" Aldon asked. "You'll be at our place, of course. We've got plenty of room and your mother would kill me if I let you stay anywhere else." The last was directed at Ted.

"Don't worry, we won't be late," he assured his father. "I'm looking forward to Mom's cooking. Will it just be us?" Last he had checked, Yurian was still living with them, though there had been family rumors that he might move in with Urey.

Aldon nodded, then grinned. "Tonight it will be. If you're here another night, there will probably be an all-family feast at Dad and Mom's."

"Oh, I'm pretty sure we can manage to stay more than one night."

* * *

The inspection of the mine and the company property didn't turn up any new information, not that Ted had really expected it to. Great-Uncle Alphonse was always thorough, and not easily fooled. Still, they had verified the information, and the owners of the mine had been very cooperative and understanding when Ted explained that they were just trying to find a way to stop the earthquakes, which had collapsed one of their mining tunnels and almost killed two people.

The only thing that seemed odd to Ted, was the gnawing feeling that they were being watched. It had left him as they went into the mine, but as they were leaving, he felt it again. While Ted wasn't particularly superstitious, he was used to his awareness of the area around him leading to good intuitive leaps. If he felt like they were being watched, they probably were.

He had been told there was nothing further up into the mountain than this mine, but the trail continued. "What's up there?" he asked Mr. Jenson, who owned Jenson Mining.

"Not much," Jenson told him. "It's still just an old hiking trail. There's a waterfall up there that's mighty pretty if you don't mind the four mile hike, but that's about it."

"No one's been hiking lately have they?" Felix asked, picking up on Ted's line of questioning.

Jenson shook his head. "Haven't seen a soul head up that way in weeks. This time of year, there's too much of a chance of mud or rock slides with the rains. You know what those are like," he looked at Ted, who nodded.

"Oh yeah. I know." He'd already worked a few of those over the years. Every State Alchemist got turns with the weather-related disasters. "Thanks for your help, Mr. Jenson."

"Anything that will get these earthquakes out of my mines," he assured them before going back inside.

Ted looked at Felix. "Maybe we'll go take a look though. I've just…got a feeling."

Felix nodded. "That's all right, I've got the same one. Is this the only trail into the mountains around here?"

"The only marked one," Ted replied. "But any kid can tell you it's not that hard to make a path. The brush isn't all that dense under the trees around here." He turned and started walking up the path. "Let's go get this over with."

They walked for about thirty minutes up the ever-steepening trail. Ted was getting close to suggesting that maybe his hunch had been wrong, when he heard something. He paused.

Felix stopped too, and they stood, for several moments, listening to something in the distance. Something that sounded like… mining? Or at least a vehicle moving. "That's not Jenson's is it?" Felix asked softly.

Ted shook his head. "Nope. Wrong direction. Looks like there might be someone else out here after all." Which meant it wasn't a legal operation. They kept going.

As they came around the next bend, Ted felt the familiar tingle of alchemy being performed nearby. Then the ground began to shake beneath their feat. Ted braced against a tree as small rocks bounded down the path in front of them, and used the tree as a protective block. Felix ducked behind another tree, doing the same.

The quake went on for nearly thirty seconds. When it was done, Ted had a new appreciation for how much of the towns they had visited _hadn't_ fallen down. He looked up the hill, and felt his blood run cold as he caught sight of a person looking down at them, just as the silhouette spun away and vanished. Alchemy…and an earthquake. "I think maybe we've found our culprit." Common sense told him it might be time to turn back. Curiosity and a dislike of having rocks brought down around his head made him decide not to. "Let's go get the bastard and get to the bottom of this."

"We don't know how many people are up here," Felix pointed out as he dusted himself off.

"We're two State Alchemists," Ted shrugged, grinning. "I'm pretty sure we can handle anything short of a militia." Even another alchemist.

Felix shrugged. "Well, sure, but do we have to do this alone?"

"If we leave now, they might pack up and leave before we get back with reinforcements," Ted pointed out, heading up the slope. "Do you want to risk it?"

"Not really." Felix agreed. "But it's on your head if those gets messy."

Ted couldn't help grinning. "After the grunt work we've been doing, I wouldn't mind if it got a little messy."

Which was a good thing, because the moment they crested the ridge, he realized that they were either about to earn themselves promotions, or get themselves in trouble.  
A silver mine; it was definitely a silver mine. Ted recognized the contents of several mine carts at the opening of a very, very rough mine shaft opening. Though the inside had to be better enforced, Ted assumed, since otherwise the earthquakes would have collapsed the tunnels long ago. So while the mine was new, and secret, it wasn't shoddy.

Thankfully, this late in the day, there was almost no one there. Except the alchemist, who wasn't even trying to hide from them. Instead, he was standing on top of a mine cart, in clothing no different than any other miner might wear, other than it was clean, had no holes in it, and he was in the most flamboyant green-and-purple plaid shirt Ted had ever seen. "Well, look at this," he commented with a long, slow drawl. The wind ruffled the lock of reddish-blond bangs that were falling into his brown eyes. "I figured we'd get visitors eventually, but I didn't think they'd get the government involved so quickly."

"Darn, you recognized us," Ted quipped, still smiling as he strolled casually forward, hands in his uniform pockets. "And here we thought we'd finally get the drop on you."

"Finally?" That got them a funny look. "You just got here."

"As far as you know." Ted shrugged. "You don't really think we'd just walk up here, all alone, without back up? Wow that would be poor planning." He hoped Felix would pick up on the banter. It would make it more convincing.

"Good thing we've got him outnumbered," Felix agreed. "Looks like everyone's gone home for the day. I certainly don't hear anything." He held a hand to his ear. "Nope. No mining. I hope you're prepared to show us the government documents giving you or your boss claim to this plot of land, because according to all the records, this is government property."

"Yep, so if you'll show us your permits, we'll be on our way," Ted nodded. "The guys down the hill didn't have a problem with a mine inspection. I'd imagine you won't either." He moved forward, holding out his hand. He kept his other hand in his pocket, clenched tightly around one of the flat disks on which he had carved his favorite transmutation circles. It was a modification on the gloves that some alchemists wore, but he preferred it so far. It allowed for a lot more of the variety he was known for.

Preppy-Alchemist shook his head. "I don't think so."

"Well, then we may have a problem." Ted let the smile slip from his face, "Because you're done destroying the towns in this area with your little distractions." He had a feeling that they had set them off whenever someone had gotten too close to the mine, or whichever trails they were using to get up it.

"And how are you going to stop us?" Preppy snorted with derision.

"Us?" asked Felix.

"I'm not alone either." Preppy laughed. "Come on out, Malla. These two aren't scared so easily."

"Oh good," a low female voice said from behind them. "I like tough guys."

Ted glanced sideways as a girl, dressed similarly to the guy, but her shirt was solid vibrant, terrifying pink. Her dark hair was also cut short, straight, and seemed inclined to fall into her face. "I see you have a girlfriend."

"Ewww, no," the woman stuck out her tongue. "He's my brother. I'm completely available."

"Yes, well, you're not my type."

"And what is your type, hotshot?"

Ted grinned again. "Attractive, for one thing."

"Malla…hold it!" Preppy barked as she glowered and reached for something around her neck.

 _Gotcha._ So, they were both alchemists. "So it's both of you causing the earthquakes. I have to admit," Ted continued as if he hadn't seen her move, "It's pretty impressive. But you've got to stop."

"And you two are going to make us?" Preppy sniffed. "We can destroy towns and you think two officers are going to give us any trouble. We're not letting you leave her, you know that right?"

"I think you've got it backwards," Felix retorted. "Only you'll be leaving, probably hogtied and trussed up spit-style…or dead. Either is fine by me."

"What are you going to do?" Preppy asked, "Shoot us?"

"That's not quite my style." Felix moved first, his hand whipping out of his pocket, and he dropped, tracing a transmutation circle in the dirt at his feet with amazing speed. A thick root shot out of the ground, whipping towards Preppy's feet. The other alchemist barely had time to recover from his surprise and dodge off the top of the cart, shouting,

"Look out, Malla!"

Ted had acted simultaneously however, spinning towards the girl, slamming a transmutation circle to the ground, and transmuting a dirt cage around the young woman. Or trying. She _wa_ s fast, he'd give her that. She lost a shoe as the bars tried to close around her foot, but she tumbled backwards, flipped, and came up, her hand reaching once more for her throat. Ted didn't give her a chance to touch her transmutation circle, he whipped out his other hand, circulated energy through the circle, and a spike of rock was joined by a gust of air. She dodged the spike as it tried to catch the chain of her necklace, but the air knocked her off balance, and she stumbled backwards. Now she looked pissed.

Ted could handle pissed. He grinned, and charged forward, startling her with a hand-to-hand move instead of more alchemy. She managed to block his first strike with her arm, but she didn't block the kick that took out her feet at the ankles. She was halfway toward recovering from the move when he took her to the ground, wrapped an arm around her neck, and planted her face in the dirt with his knee in her back. "Someone should have taught you how to fight," he commented as he pressed the hold. He let go of one hand long enough to slam his hand with the earth transmutation circle to the ground, and turning grass into rope. Keeping his knee planted in her back, he grabbed one hand, tied a knotted loop around her wrist, and pulled. She tried to fight him, but he was stronger and better trained. "Look, give up, and you don't get hurt."

"We haven't lost yet," she grunted.

Given the sounds of alchemy combat coming from behind him, Ted had to admit that was probably true. He turned to see Felix and Preppy in a much more impressive fight. At least one of them knew what he was doing as he dodged Felix's clever twisting roots.

This fight was going to last too long. Ted transmuted the ropes so they simply twisted up out of the ground, and wrapped them between himself and the girl, effectively tying her to the ground. "Sorry, sister," he grinned. "It's been fun, but I've got work to do." He reached down and snapped off her necklace, taking the little metal transmutation circle with it. "I'll just keep this. You have a nice little rest."

He turned around as one of Felix's roots finally managed to get a hold of Preppy's arm, then another had his leg, and he was lifted off the ground without any way to sketch off a transmutation circle, though Ted would bet he had something similar on him to his sister's necklace.

"Nice work," Ted complimented him.

"That was almost too easy," Felix said, sounding slightly disappointed.

"What are you doing here?"

"Or, maybe not." Ted turned as he saw nearly a dozen men, most dressed for mining, coming up the hill. _Damn it, they have a night shift._ "If they make us late for dinner, I'm going to be annoyed."

"I have news for you," Felix commented, "We're going to be late for dinner no matter what at this point."

"Fabulous. Maybe we can handle this without a fight." They were miners. They were probably brawlers, but they couldn't possibly handle more alchemists. This time he pulled out his pocket watch holding it out so it was clearly visible. "We're here inspecting the mines," he called out as he walked forward. "Any of you the owner?"

The man in front shook his head. "Foreman," he replied simply. The other men grumbled, but didn't speak up. "You've got no right to be here."

"No, you've got no right to be here," Ted countered. "This is government land, and its off-limits to mining operations due to its location along this fault line. Also pretty sure it's illegal to set off earthquakes that are doing damage for almost a hundred miles. So if you can't produce paperwork, I need the name of your employer."

"Not a chance, kid."

"Knowingly working an illegal mine? You'll be up on charges too. There's jail time coming for someone. I can't imagine your cut in this mine is worth that much. Especially not if you're found liable for part of the damages done. That's several million sens so far, based on the reported information we've gathered."

Now they looked nervous, and there was muttered whispering between several men.

The Foreman waved them down. "And if we cooperate?"

Ted shrugged. "If you can prove you didn't know the man who hired you was working an illegal shaft, I imagine there'd be a lot more leniency. You might even get to keep what you've been paid so far…. Walk free. It's your choice."

The Foreman looked at the alchemists –one dangling in the air and one trapped to the ground—and nodded. "You're looking for a man named Viggo Storgen."

* * *

"I'm impressed," the Resembool Chief of Police was smiling at Ted and Felix as he closed the door on the jail cell that now held both of the alchemists, hands bound. The miners had willingly accompanied them to the station for the purpose of leaving statements that they had been paid to work, but had been unaware of the illegal nature of the mine.

Ted didn't particularly believe them all, but they had provided enough information—and agreed to testify in court if needed—so they'd probably get off pretty easy. "You solved that surprisingly quickly."

"Fresh eyes on a case sometimes see things," Felix shrugged. "Proteus' familiarity with the area also helped a lot."

"Any Resembool kid knows these mountains," Ted grinned. "It was a hunch that paid off, that's all."

"Humility, from you?" his father chuckled from his position standing along the wall. "Now I've seen everything."

"Not quite everything," Ted said as they all walked back down the hall out of the police station holding area. "You haven't seen me inhale dinner yet this evening." He had been quite happy to let the police handle sending out a squad to arrest this Viggo Storgen fellow, who lived two towns away. As long as he got the full report, they were good to go. Only if he caused more trouble would they be needed personally. It wasn't like they could do much about the earthquakes. The two alchemists wouldn't be setting anymore off, but that didn't necessarily mean that now that the fault line was more active, it wouldn't remain that way.

"I'm sure it's not much different from the other meals of your childhood," Aldon commented glibly, "But there's plenty left, and your mother's keeping it warm."

"Great!" Ted grinned. "Cause I might just set a record."


	19. Chapter 19

**November 1** **st** **, 1985**

The only thing Ian didn't like about going back to work, was the return of the need to be professional in public with his girlfriend, because as soon as the word leaked to the press that Ian Elric _had_ a serious romantic interest, they would never have a moment's peace. At least, not until people got bored with the news. So he had given Bonnie a particularly passionate kiss good night the evening before, and consoled himself with the pleasure of general friendly chatter in the make-up chair. It was nice to be able to do that again.

The day promised to be exciting. Tanner had told Ian he specifically wanted him for a new project. A rare opportunity that Ian wasn't about to miss talking to the boss about. He also needed to talk to Tanner about the decisions he had come to regarding the direction his career was going, and where he wanted to take it.

He had to wait until the afternoon, since he was filming a promotional spot that morning for the film he had finished just before he and Bonnie had slipped away on their vacation. As soon as he finished the television interview, he reported to Bartholomew Tanner's office.

Tanner was on the phone, but hung up as Ian took a seat across the man's cluttered desk. "Ian, punctual as always. I take it the press weren't too rough on you."

Ian chuckled. "Not at all. They're expecting a hit with a Tom Hudson movie. The questions mostly centered around how it felt to get to be in an iconic series, my character, the usual stuff." Thankfully it had been easy to rave about the co-stars, the storyline, and getting to work on the film, all without giving away too much. "Don't worry, I know how to talk it up."

"I know you do, Ian. I've never had to worry about that with you." Tanner waved the comment off as if he'd never had any reason to worry, and he probably hadn't. Ian had always been a favorite of the press when it came to his film…and legitimate news sources. "You seem to have had a relaxing vacation."

"It was good," Ian agreed, not wanting to go too far down that line of discussion.

Tanner didn't push the issue, though he did give Ian a considering look.

Ian took advantage of the moment. "Before we get started, I've got something I'd like to discuss," Ian said as he leaned forward in his chair, over the desk, hoping that he had enough of a professional relationship with the man to have this conversation.

Tanner's expression turned curious, with a hint of caution. "I'm all ears, Ian. What's on your mind?"

"I've been giving this a lot of thought, and I feel like I need to branch out more," Ian began in his most professional tone. "I'm falling into the trap of being type-cast, and I don't like it. I can do weightier parts, and I'd like that chance. I'm not asking you to give me parts, just… consider me for something that doesn't involve my naked backside when it comes across your desk. I'd also," he ran on, so Tanner couldn't interrupt, "like to try my hand at something that's interested me for a while."

Tanner looked a little bemused, but he nodded. "And just what's that?"

"Directing."

He had surprised Bartholomew Tanner… and that was no mean feat. Tanner leaned back in his chair, crossed his arms, and looked very thoughtful, then slightly impressed. He chuckled. "Well I'll see what I've got on the table. For directing, I can see where you might be pretty good at that. We've got a new high school drama we're putting together, _Riverhill_. I'll get you a copy of the first couple of scripts. If you think you can do anything with it, I'll let you assist me for a few episodes and we can see how it goes. Now, as for the acting," he shook his head. "I'm afraid I've got a part I really need you for before I can give you anything else." He slid the script across his desk. "Take a look at this. I think it'll fit in perfectly with what you've just told me."

Curious, Ian picked up the script, and might have dropped it in surprise if his hands hadn't tightened instinctively. _Fullmetal._ Was this what he thought it was? Flipping to the dramatis personae inside, Ian realized all at once that his guest was correct. The movie was about Grandpa Ed, and Great-Uncle Alphonse, he saw at once. He flipped through the script, immediately intensely curious. It wasn't a documentary, not even close, but he recognized in it the outlines of stories he knew far better than whoever had written it. There were two main plotlines, three if the earliest flash-backs counted, tracing a "current" storyline that took place after Ed and Al had returned to Amestris around Ian's age, paralleled with elements of their lives during the period they had been trying to get Al's body back. There were a couple of heart-wrenching flashbacks to their childhood as well. Necessary, he assumed, for the proper pathos. He sat, skimming, for several minutes. Tanner let him, though Ian caught the man grinning. "This is good," Ian admitted. Good, and challenging. He had no idea how Tanner planned to make alchemy look good on camera. Possibly he was planning to hire a couple of actual alchemists to get the effects right.

"Given you know half the people in that script, I'm glad you think so," Tanner was still grinning broadly. "Do you feel up to the lead in a project of this magnitude?"

"The lead?" Ian looked down at the script again, and realized he'd been handed a specific character copy, not the director's copy. "You want me to play _Grandpa?"_ He could have seen himself as Jean Havoc, but Edward Elric? "Wouldn't it make more sense for me to play Alphonse?" he asked. "He's a lot taller."

"And stuff you in a suit of armor half the movie? You're kidding. The girls won't pay to see you hidden in armor."

"Which is, of course, the only reason I'm in this movie without even an audition." Ian was okay with being every girl's dream boyfriend, but his audience was not entirely made up of clones of Bonnie's little sister. At least, he hoped not.

"I didn't say that," Tanner pointed out. "It's difficult to cast a living legend. You, of all people we could cast, _know_ Edward Elric: his mannerisms, his speech patterns, his quirks and habits. You'd also put the most work into getting him right, and unless I'm wrong, you're used to alchemist and how they actually do things. You _won't_ look like an idiot faking alchemy."

It was true. All of it. "Oh I'm not turning the job down," Ian assured him. "It just seems like you'd want to cast someone in the roll who might fit the type better. Who's going to believe the Fullmetal Alchemist was ever this tall?"

"Would you believe most of Amestris doesn't believe he was ever that short?"

* * *

"You seem excited," Bonnie said as she fell into step beside Ian on his walk towards the parking lot after work. She hadn't seen much of Ian at all after he left wardrobe in the morning for his interview. She had been head-deep in fittings and costume alterations for most of the day. "Your meeting with Tanner went well?"

Ian nodded. "He's got a new project for me," he grinned. "That, and he offered me the opportunity to assistant direct on a new high school drama he's directing."

"Oh, is it _Riverhill?_ " It was the only series starting soon that she had heard about. "Clare Rosemund and I are going to be lead costume designers for it. I just got the information this morning."

"You are?" Ian didn't sound surprised as much as he sounded pleased. "That's great!"

"Why did Tanner offer you the directing job?" Bonnie flushed. That sounded rude.

Thankfully, Ian didn't take it that way. If anything, his expression grew more pleased with himself. "Because I told him I wanted to try my hand at directing. I think I might be good at it, and apparently he figures it's worth a chance. It may not be a glamorous star-studded film, but I think I know enough about angsty teenage dramas to direct one."

"I didn't know you were interested in directing," Bonnie blurted out before she could think better of it. "Though I think that's great!" It was a wonderful opportunity, and it did say a lot about Tanner's confidence in Ian that he would let him assistant direct on a new project coming up that quickly. "I thought he had an acting role he wanted to speak with you about."

"He did, and I'm taking it." Ian smiled apologetically. "I just can't talk about it yet. Tanner said they'll be announcing the production officially in-studio next week. I'm not allowed to say what the project is until then."

"Wow." He must have really wanted Ian for the part if he hadn't even waited for auditions to discuss it with him. "Sounds like a good opportunity for your career. Is there anything you can tell me about it?"

"Well, I can tell you it's one that will probably disappoint a lot of my fans."

This was supposed to be a good thing. Ian's eyes had that mischievous twinkle in them though, that Bonnie had learned meant he was definitely teasing. She decided to play along. "Why will they be disappointed?"

"Because, for once, I have a role where I can keep my pants on the entire film and it won't seem out of character."

Well… that might make a nice change. Bonnie smiled back. "You would deny your screaming fans your flesh?"

Ian laughed. "From what you keep telling me, I don't really have enough to spare."

 **November 12** **th** **, 1985**

It took Alyse several seconds to figure out why her home office space looked wrong. Then it hit her… it was dark outside. When she had sat down to work on the Smith-Varnelli wedding, it had been early afternoon. _Crap… I fell asleep._ She wished she were more surprised. The cancer treatments were miserable things. The day itself was not particularly bad, but the after effects were getting slowly worse after each session, and it was draining all her energy. The nausea wasn't helping.

She glanced at the clock; six o'clock? Dinner needed to be made, and her work wasn't finished… and all she wanted to do was curl up in bed and sleep until this was all over. _When did I turn into such a wimp?_

She sat up, and her chair squeaked. Seconds later, she heard footsteps in the hall. She turned to see Cal standing in the doorway. "Hey, sweetheart. You know, there are more comfortable places to nap."

"Very funny, Calvin. I didn't get anything…" Alyse looked down at the forms and orders on her desk… "These are finished."

Cal leaned over and kissed her cheek. "I took care of a few things for you. I hope you don't mind."

Alyse felt a moment's panic. "What do you mean you took care of them? What did you do?"

Cal smiled. "Well I remembered you saying you needed to get these ordered –the flowers, finalize the photographer, the tuxedo rentals… so I called them all and got it done. Take a look. How'd I do?"

Alyse looked over all the paperwork he had mentioned. It was filled out perfectly, with all the pertinent details, correct, and finalized. "That was…perfect. How did you do that?"

"I've been watching you do this for how many years?"

"But how did you get them to listen to you?"

"I told them I was your secretary."

Alyse smiled tiredly. "I could get used to that. Does that mean you'll sit on my desk wearing something cute?"

"Beautiful, if it would make you well, I'd sit on your desk naked."

"Tempting." Alyse sighed, then leaned back, her head resting against his chest. "I don't suppose you made dinner too?"

"Charlie should be pulling vegetable lasagna out of the oven as we speak," Cal surprised her again. "Are you hungry?" He sounded hopeful. Not that she blamed him for that. Lately her appetite was terrible. Despite being too tired to go to the gym, she had lost five pounds.

"A little." She hoped it would smell and taste good. All of the chemicals and treatments were messing with her sense of taste, too. "I just wish this were over. I don't have time to be sick like this."

"You'll be okay." Cal stroked her head gently… until his hand stopped abruptly.

"Cal, something wrong?"

"No. It's fine."

She knew that voice. "You're lying, Cal. What's wrong?"

Alyse almost wished she hadn't asked. Cal held his hand in front of her face, and she could see several dozen strands of her own hair caught up in his fingers. She hadn't even felt them go. _I will not cry. We knew this was coming. I will not cry._ "Well…I guess it's time to try out the new wig."

 **November 13** **th** **, 1985**

Bonnie knew she was in for some surprises when Ian called, sounding extremely excited, to tell her that he was picking her up in an hour and he had something to show her. The first surprise came when he pulled up in front of her apartment in his new car. Well, it was a slightly used '83 sports car in a metallic dark green that was actually very attractive. "It's lovely," Bonnie assured him as she came around to get in. The interior was light tan leather, and very comfortable. "So, is this the big surprise?"

"Part of it," Ian assured her as she buckled up. "But the best is yet to come."

"Oh really?"

"You'll see." He pulled away from her apartment. They weren't in the car for long. Just a few minutes later, he pulled up outside a whitewashed luxury apartment building. Okay, so it wasn't uptown, but it was a nice middle-class neighborhood. "This is where my new apartment is."

"Wow." Bonnie got out of the car and followed Ian inside. The building had a front manager's desk in a little, clean lobby, and rows of metal mailboxes lined one of the walls. The woman at the desk smiled at Ian, clearly recognizing him, and waved him on through. He and Bonnie stepped on the elevator, and Ian hit the fifth floor, which was the second highest button. Bonnie was surprised. The building looked taller than that.

When they got out, Ian led her down an unassuming, but clean, hallway to the apartment one down from the end of the hall. "You're going to love this," he assured her as he pulled out a key and unlocked the door.

Bonnie followed Ian into a huge expanse of windows and light. Suddenly she understood why the building looked taller; the main portion of the apartment was a huge open space, with a roomy kitchen and living room, and one wall that was all full-length windows facing out over a park. To her left, the main level wrapped around to include a small hallway off which she could just see a bedroom and a door to a bathroom, and one other door. This was all tucked under a staircase that started by the windows and followed the wall up to a second story, which had a balcony over the kitchen and three doors off of that that faced out over the big room. "How can you afford this place?" she asked, a little awed.

Ian was grinning. "Well it's not as expensive as it looks, and I've been saving for a long time. That, and I finally make enough that this is in my price range. So, what do you think? Better than my bachelor-hole?"

Bonnie chuckled. That was about the right description for his little apartment, which was even smaller than her little apartment. "Much more fitting your status as a decently respectable professional actor," she nodded. "Though I'm not sure your furniture is good enough for this place."

Ian laughed. "Not all of it." Not that he had much either. "But it will do. I figured you might be willing to help me with that. We can hit some stores, and you can help me figure out how to make the place match. You are the style expert after all."

Bonnie felt a little rush of pleasure. "Well that is my area of expertise," she agreed. She could already imagine what would go well in this large, bright space. Everything was painted white or light cream, and the appliances in the kitchen had a lovely matte chrome finish, so anything would go. "When do you get to move in?"

"It's mine as of this morning," Ian replied, slipping an arm lightly around her shoulder. "I figured I'd break it in with a little new year's party once it's all set up. You know, start the year off right with a few friends." He glanced sideways at her. "What do you think? Just a few of our friends from work?"

He was asking if she minded having their relationship 'outted,' she realized, grateful for the thoughtfulness instead of an assumption. "I think that sounds fun," she assured him honestly. It really would be, she thought, to just be able to be themselves with their friends, and not worry about the world finding out that they were a couple. "As long as Angie isn't invited."

Ian shook his head. "Don't worry. Angie will most assuredly _not_ be invited to our most exclusive party. You have absolute equal say over the guest list."

"Great! Then we should definitely get started on decorating this apartment. Can't have it look like I let you continue to live like a slob."

" _Let_ me?" Ian turned, pulling her in toward him with his arm. "Why, Miss Walsh, that sounds awfully proprietary of you. Are you suggesting that we're at a point in our relationship where you just expect me to do what you say?"

"Not _all_ the time," Bonnie assured him, enjoying the goofy smile on his face. He was teasing her, but she liked it. "I suppose, occasionally, you can make up your own mind about something."

 **November 14** **th** **, 1985**

It was good to be home, Al thought as he sat in his own living room for the first time in a couple of months, a cat purring on his lap, and the smell of dinner wafting in from the kitchen, where Elicia and Gracia were cooking together. Cal, Alyse, and Charlie were coming over to join them, and Al was both eager and nervous to see them, particularly Alyse. He hadn't gotten to see his daughter in person since she started treatments, and he wanted to reassure himself that she was doing at least as well as could be expected. They had spoken on the phone of course, but it just wasn't the same thing.

So when the doorbell rang, Al was the first one at the door, smiling at his daughter and her family as they came in out of the chilly evening air. The first thing he did was enfold Alyse in a warm, fatherly hug.

Alyse squeezed him back. "Welcome home, Dad."

"It's good to see you, sweetie." She seemed tired, and there was something different about her hair. It was a wig, he realized quickly, though a very good one. It looked like real hair. Like she had styled her own in a just-above-the-shoulders look, and dyed it. The color was almost exactly the color her hair was naturally, but missing the silvers that had crept into it over the past couple of years. "This is a good style on you."

Alyse smiled. "Thanks. I'm getting used to it."

There was a sound of joy, and Al moved out of the way as Elicia rushed into the entryway and hugged Alyse.

"How are you?" Al asked his son-in-law.

Cal managed a halfway convincing smile, but Al knew that tension behind Cal's eyes. Things were not going as well as he would have hoped, and he was worried about his wife.

Al knew that feeling. "Some days are better than others." They moved into the living room as the girls vanished from the hall.

"Well come in and attempt to relax for an evening," Al suggested with a reassuring smile. "I'm sure you could use it. Now, where's my grandson?" he turned, his smile widening as he gave Charlie a hug. He couldn't really call him a boy anymore, given he was almost sixteen, but he was glad Charlie humored him and didn't complain. "How's your life? Working hard at school? Spending time with your girlfriend?"

The last comment got a grin from Charlie. "Yeah, we've been doing a lot of studying."

"I'd never heard of a study date before a couple of years ago," Cal admitted. "But apparently it works. His grades are good."

"Shelby's good at everything." Charlie shrugged. "There isn't a subject we're in she can't explain so it makes sense."

"Smart girl." Al had met the girl a couple of times. She seemed imminently sensible, smart, sweet… a lot like Alyse had been at that age.

While the food was being finished up, Al, Cal, and Charlie set the table, and poured drinks. By the time they were finished, everything was ready and they sat down to their first family meal in months. Al wished Will and Ren could have joined them, but Will was giving an evening lecture at the University, and Ren had been at the hospital all day, helping alternately with two baby deliveries. They would make sure to have another evening soon where they were all together. Al was all too aware how precious time was these days.

Even Charlie, who had seen just a couple of months ago, seemed older. He had certainly grown a little physically, but the experience they were all going through had made him more mature, more conscientious of those around him.

"Any word from Gloria?" Elicia asked at one point during general dinner conversation.

Alyse nodded. "She calls at least once a week. She's really enjoying her classes, particularly where journalism is concerned. Apparently her professor said he was going to see about putting her in for an internship with a local new station in the Spring semester so she could get some on-the-job training because she's doing so well."

"That's excellent!" Al beamed between bites of steak and potatoes. He could just imagine her excitement. Someday his granddaughter was going to make an excellent journalist. He could see her on the television, reporting on all sorts of news events. Or maybe she would work for the papers. There were multiple news venues now.

"We're pretty proud," Cal acknowledged with a grin and a nod as he ate. "Next thing you know, she'll be getting lead stories."

* * *

After dinner, Elicia and Alyse retreated to the kitchen to wash up, not because they had to, but because it gave them some uninterrupted time to talk, just mother and daughter. "You know you don't have to help," Elicia tried to assure her as Alyse put an apron on over her clothes.

"I want to," Alyse said firmly. "I'm tired of feeling like I can't do anything for myself anymore."

"Cal and Charlie won't let you clean your own house?" Elicia asked, but didn't argue the matter further. Instead she turned on the sink and reached for a plate.

Alyse took up the rinse and dry side. "Not a dish or speck of dust," she confirmed with a sigh. "I shouldn't complain. I've wished they were both better at keeping the house clean for years. Now I just wish it wasn't because I can't even get my own work done. I always thought I was tougher than this, Mom."

"You're holding up very well, from what I can see," Elicia replied reassuringly. "How are the treatments working?" They had avoided the topic at dinner, wanting to just have a nice family meal.

Alyse frowned. "They're not as effective as they hoped," she admitted quietly, "But they are working, so we haven't changed anything yet. It's still the best course of treatment. It may just take longer than planned. We don't know yet." She rinsed the plate Elicia handed her, then set it on the drying rack. "The treatments make me feel worse than the cancer, isn't that awful? I'm tired, nauseous…. it's worse than being pregnant, and I miss my hair already."

Elicia let her daughter vent. It wasn't fair, and it was difficult, and there was no reason to try and claim otherwise. "I think I still have my wig upstairs," she commented. It was old, dating back to a very dark time in her life, but it was there.

"Oh, Mom, I'm sorry." Alyse looked immediately apologetic. "I'm whining."

"It's fine," Elicia replied. "We all need to whine from time to time. There are things that happen in our lives that aren't fair, that other people around us can try to show they care, but they can't always understand what we're really dealing with. When we come through it on the other side, we're stronger, but we never entirely forget."

Alyse nodded. "I'm scared, Mom. What if I don't make it? We can fight this as hard as we can and there's still the possibility..."

Elicia paused in her washing to slip an arm around her daughter's shoulders. "Then you, your doctors, and our entire family will have exhausted every possible answer. We will never give up. You know that. You also know that, if the worst does happen, we'll make sure that Cal, Charlie, and Gloria are taken care of."

Alyse dropped the towel in the sink and turned to wrap her arms around Elicia, who tightened her own grip around her daughter. "Thanks, Mom," she sniffled. "The boys would be hopeless on their own."


	20. Chapter 20

**November 19** **th** **, 1985**

No matter how hard he tried, Charlie Fischer just couldn't seem to figure out how X and Y came out equal, or why he should care about algebraic equations when his mother was fighting cancer. Yet he couldn't remember ever trying harder in his classes, because the last thing she needed to be worrying about right now was whether her son was doing well in his schoolwork. His grades had never been better…but to him, half of the work had become otherwise meaningless, and tonight, no matter how hard her tried, he just couldn't focus. Even with his medication, paying attention seemed like a lost cause.

"Charlie, are you okay?"

At least there was one bright spot in his world. Charlie looked up from his math homework and into the exquisite beauty of Shelby Cruse's face. At least if the world was falling apart, he had a beautiful, caring girlfriend. At the moment, her expression was one of concern. "No," he admitted, putting down his pencil. "I can't focus on this tonight. I'm sorry, Shells."

Charlie stood up from Shelby's parents' dining room table and went into the kitchen to refill his soda. Not that he thought a cola would actually help, but he was thirsty. At least it wasn't staring at numbers that refused to cooperate. He heard another chair scrape on the floor behind him, and he had barely poured his drink when he felt a warm hand on his arm. He turned to find Shelby smiling at him. "Hey. We've been at this for a while, if you need a break… we could do something to distract that brain of yours." She leaned in and kissed him.

Charlie felt heat run from his face to his toes. Ignoring his glass, he wrapped his arms around his girlfriend, deepening the kiss. Shelby's folks were out at a social event. They wouldn't be back for hours. A little make-out session was just the distraction he needed. _I have the most amazing girlfriend in the world._ Shelby had listened to him talk for hours over the past weeks about his worries about his Mom. She always seemed to know when to listen, when to make him focus and… when to distract him.

They retreated to her room, just in case her parents did happen to come home early, and then Charlie forgot about everything outside her door. The world narrowed to himself, Shelby, and her soft dusky-blue bedspread. "Love you," he murmured as he kissed her lips, her freckles, her adorable button nose. His hands tangled quickly in the crinkles of her curly, dark-blond hair, then slid down her back. He felt a little thrill when her fingers slid down his chest, even over his t-shirt, down, until they hooked the loops on his jeans, then slid up and caught the edge of his shirt, her hands on his skin. Charlie felt every muscle in his body respond. _Oooooh…_

The buttons on Shelby's sweater were soon undone, and he felt the smooth, softness of the skin on her waist, her lithe form pressed against him. He'd never seen her bra before… simple, white with little blue dots, a little lace. Nothing fancy… somehow the sexiest thing he'd ever seen all at once. She overwhelmed his senses. She was clearly into it too…"I love you, Shels…." He murmured in her ear between kisses. "…so much…."

"I love you, too." She smiled, returning the kisses with the same ardor…

Oh…god… could they? Charlie unhooked her bra, laying bare the most beautiful sight he had ever seen. He groaned, unsure if it was only in his mind or if the sound came out of his mouth.

"Charlie," Shelby gasped between kisses, her fair skin flushed from her freckles to her waist. The look on her face matched his, he thought. His longing, he need… but he had to be sure.

He paused, his heart pounding, a little breathless. "Shelby –I want to be with you but –only if you want to."

"I do," she nodded, her hand sliding down his shoulder. "But I don't have anything for this… situation." Now her face was bright red.

Charlie doubted he was blushing any less, but he grinned as a feeling of elation filled him. "I've got one in my pocket."

* * *

Women were amazing… correction. _His_ woman was the most amazing, loving, attractive… s _exy_ girl on the planet. Charlie cuddled Shelby closer, his arms wrapped around her waist, the warm heat of their skin touching, his chest and stomach to side. "I love you," he murmured in her ear. "That was just what I needed. Thank you." It had been sweet, and awkward at first, but in the end, he had never felt as good as he did right now. "How was it for you?" If she didn't feel the way he did, he would feel awful. She had looked totally into it earlier, as he had watched her, face-to-face. Now, a little doubt crept up into his mind.

His worry must have been clear in her tone. Shelby smiled shyly at him. "I liked it," she said, rolling to face him. "I'm just worried about what our parents will say if they find out."

"So we don't tell them." Charlie kissed her cute little nose. "It's not their business. We should get dressed and go back to math before your parents get back."

Shelby nodded thoughtfully as she sat up and refastened the front-hook on her bra. "Charlie… how long have you been keeping a condom in your pocket?"

He hoped he didn't look too embarrassed as he tried to shrug casually. "Oh… since I was thirteen."

 **December 2nd, 1985**

Ian couldn't remember the last time he had skipped work, especially not on a filming day, but he had awoken that morning with no voice, a sore throat, a low-grade fever, and the worst stuffed-head he'd had in years. He had managed to call in long enough to tell them he wouldn't make it, then crawled back into bed and passed out.

When he awoke again, it was after midday. He managed to eat the cold leftovers of his Xingese fried rice, drink a glass of water, blow his nose, and relieve himself before he fell asleep on the new couch he and Bonnie had found at a discount furniture store a few weeks ago.

The third time he awoke, the sun had moved far enough past the large south facing windows he was sure it was past the end of the work day. _Being sick blows_. Groggy, and bemused by the leftover remnants of fever-induced dreams hovering on the edges of his subconscious, Ian decided it was time to call for help. Given he was almost never sick, he had nothing in the apartment to take for a cold, fever, or even to help with his congested sinuses. At least he had most of a box of rarely-used tissues. For the first time in a long time, Ian missed having his mother on hand to take care of him. He reached for the phone, and dialed his girlfriend instead, hoping she hadn't worked late.

"Hello?" The voice on the other line didn't sound much better than his.

Ian's heart sank. "Hey Bonnie," he rasped. "It's Ian. I was hoping you... might come over. I'm sick," he managed to get through it without coughing more than twice. He sounded terrible.

"You too?" Bonnie asked. "I didn't know. I've been... home all day," she coughed.

"Sounds like we have the same thing." Ian kept his disappointment in his head. "Sorry. Take care of yourself. I'll survive... somehow."

"Save the drama for the set," Bonnie quipped, her chuckle turning quickly back into coughing. Ian heard her blow her nose on the other end of the line. "Have you tried a shower? That helped."

If it had helped, Ian didn't want to think about how bad Bonnie must have sounded earlier. "I hadn't," he admitted. "Haven't been awake much. I'll try that. Thanks."

It took all of the little energy he had for Ian to drag himself in to the bathroom and shower. Hot water did not sound appealing to his fevered body, but after a few minutes standing in the fresh, hot steam, he did feel his head begin to slowly unclog a little. So he stood there, letting the water course down his body, until the worst of the coughing stopped, and he had temporarily emptied his head and throat of a lot of very unpleasant gunk.

He was startled by a knock on his bathroom door. "Ian?"

"Bonnie?" Straightening up, Ian turned off the almost-gone-cold shower and grabbed a towel, rubbing himself down. "What are you doing here?"

"You invited me," she retorted through the door, as if it were obvious.

"Well... yeah." Ian wrapped the towel around his waist and opened the door.

Bonnie was standing there, wrapped in her thickest soft pale green sweater, dark green sweatpants, and looking not much better than he felt; red nosed, sunken eyed, and pale, but she was smiling. "I see you took my advice."

Ian nodded. "Yeah. Though I might have...dozed off."

"Well get dressed before you get cold," Bonnie suggested. "I brought dinner."

"You cooked?" Ian looked at her, stunned, as he crossed past her in the little hallway and ducked into his bedroom.

That earned him a snort of amusement... a rather congested one. "I went by the deli on the way here. They have the best hot chicken noodle soup in town."

That sounded amazing. "I'll be out in a minute." Quickly he dragged on shorts and a clean t-shirt and joined her.

His kitchen had turned into a buffet of health care. Not only had Bonnie brought them both soup -with fresh crusty bread still warm- orange juice, and the makings for lemon tea with honey, but she had also brought decongestants, headache and fever medication, a thermometer, another box of tissues, and... "Is that a plush cat?"

"I snuggle with him," Bonnie replied as she poured the soup into two bowls and slid one across the counter toward him. "You have a problem with that?"

"Nope..." Ian took the soup, said "Thank you," and dug in. He was grateful that she had kept him in mind when ordering dinner, she had ordered four people's worth of soup, three of which went into Ian before he was done, along with half of the loaf of bread.

"Did you eat at all today?" Bonnie asked as she poured water over the tea leaves in their cups.

"Leftovers," Ian answered between his last few bites. Then he reached for his glass and downed his second full cup of cold orange juice.

"How do you survive?"

He smiled weakly. "Normally I don't get sick."

"That makes two of us," Bonnie replied, without making the pointed comment that she was still better prepared for it. "Now, take whatever you need and go get comfortable on the couch." She gestured to the small pharmacy at the end of the counter.

"Trying to spoil me?" Ian teased as he reached for the nearest bottle and checked dosages.

"Nope," Bonnie shook hier head. "You're going to be my hot waterbottle while we snuggle up and watch movies. I've had cramps like there's a bear chewing on my abdomen all day and you owe me."

Ian wasn't going to argue with that logic. She had the same crud he did and cramps and she had come over to share the care...and the misery. He took his medicine without complaint, claimed his mug of tea, added a liberal dosing of honey, and turned his television on to the station that usually ran old movies, and set himself down on the couch, leaning over so she would have room to cuddle up against him.

Bonnie joined him, dragging the soft blue fleece off the back of the couch and wrapping them both up as she cuddled up to his side, her own mug in hand. "I hope there's something good on tonight."

Ian laid one arm around her shoulders, allowing his tea to soothe his sore throat. The commercial ended, and the opening title came up with _Kiss Me, I'm Yours,_ a mediocre romantic comedy from the early sixties. He chuckled, then coughed, and took another sip. "At least there's something good on my couch."

That earned him an elbow in the side, and a dramatic sigh he could tell she didn't mean. "We could change the channel."

"Are you going to let me move that long?" Ian asked. She had ordered him to sit, after all.

"Not a chance." Bonnie let her head sink further into his shoulder. "Besides, I like this movie. Mom and I used to watch it."

"At least someone will get a mushy romance tonight," Ian teased, setting down his cup to reach for a tissue. He'd settle for cuddling. At least they could be sick together. "Thanks for coming over."  
Bonnie smiled. "Tomorrow, you're handling breakfast."

 **December 3rd, 1985**

The smell of hot coffee and sizzling bacon weren't a dream Bonnie realized as she slowly opened her eyes. It took a few moments for her groggy mind to recognize the living room of Ian's new apartment. She was wrapped in a blanket, alone, on the plush burgundy couch. Sounds joined the smells, and she realized Ian was in the kitchen.  
Enjoying the warmth of the blanket, which still smelled a little like Ian, Bonnie stretched slowly before sitting up.

Ian was standing at the stove, still in his sleep clothes, frying bacon. The coffee pot was full, but still freshly steaming.

Wrapping the blanket around herself, Bonnie crossed the living room to the long island and sat down on one of the two bar-stool style seats Ian had bought to accommodate the high counter. She poured herself coffee, chasing it with a fresh dose of decongestants. "Smells good."

"Good morning, beautiful," Ian smiled, still sounding stuffed up, but looking better than he had when she arrived yesterday. Then he'd been glassy eyed with fever, and horribly stuffed up, even after the shower. Now he looked only half-dead. "I promised you breakfast, and it should be ready in just another minute."

The clock on the wall caught Bonnie's attention, and she felt a sudden jolt of panic run through it. "Ian…it's almost nine!"

But he didn't seem to be too worried. "Relax. I called us both in sick again. I don't know about you, but I feel like I've got cotton in my brain, and I can't read like this."

His voice was pretty ragged. Bonnie nodded. "Who did you tell?"

"I called Tanner, and then I called wardrobe and Ramona picked up."

Ramona… Bonnie tried not to let the feeling of dread creeping up her spine get any further. _Relax, girl. It's okay._ "They didn't find it weird you called for us both?"

Ian smiled. "Bonnie, I'm pretty sure Tanner's got it figured out, even if he's not talking. I don't know how many other people do, but I think we can be fairly confident that people who see us every day at work will figure it out sooner or later. I mean, we were friends, then we were obviously not getting along, and now we're fine. If that doesn't scream to people who create drama for a living that there's a relationship, I'm not really sure what does."

Bonnie took a sip of her coffee. Ian was right, of course. From a purely professional viewpoint, it probably did look to outsiders like one of their daytime drama television shows, even though they had made a point of never arguing at work. They worked with some very intelligent people though, and she knew that most of the wardrobe crew had been ready to beat Ian bloody at her say so without even knowing what he had done to make her upset.

So a few people probably knew…and that was okay. Clearly they weren't talking about it, because there hadn't been any reporters or gossipy friends asking about their relationship. Besides, she had agreed to Ian's idea of a New Year's Eve party. Everyone would know sooner or later.

While she was mulling that over, Ian turned and slid the last of the bacon onto a plate. There was also a box of rice flake cereal, milk, and Ian had cut up the last two bananas Bonnie had seen in the kitchen the night before. It wasn't elaborate, but it was breakfast. "Thanks for cooking."

"Thank you for coming last night." Ian smiled as he came around and sat down next to her, heaping a plate with food. "I'd probably still be hacking up a lung on the couch."

"You really need to keep your apartment better stocked," Bonnie chided gently as she filled her plate and poured a bowl of cereal. "It could have been something more serious. How's your fever?"

"Down. Thanks to you, I'm pretty heavily drugged this morning." Ian's reply was broken by a jaw-cracking yawn. "Though I haven't slept like that in years." He leaned over and kissed her briefly. "Thanks."

For a moment, Bonnie wasn't sure how to respond. They hadn't _done_ anything last night except watch old movies until they both passed out again, sick and exhausted. She had…fallen asleep… curled up with Ian on the couch.

Ian had slept on the couch.

They had spent the night _together_ on the couch… and everything was fine.

Maybe Ian could read minds, or maybe he had just finally figured her out enough to know what she was probably thinking, because he reached out a hand and gave hers a quick, reassuring squeeze and his smiling face seemed to say _everything is fine._ "I think today calls for a lot of very enthusiastic sleep-cuddling. How about you?"  
Bonnie almost snorted milk out of her nose. "What does enthusiastic _sleep_ look like?"

"Don't know," Ian admitted. "I don't know what I look like when I'm sleeping. Just what I look like faking it on screen. But maybe if you fall asleep after I do, you can tell me later." He raised both eyebrows suggestively. "Though I'd say you're excellent at enthusiastic sleep-cuddling, if this morning is any indication."

"Care to tell me how you know that?" Bonnie asked.

"I woke up first." Ian reached for the bacon again. "Which means I had the pleasure of waking up with the most beautiful woman I've ever met cuddled up in my arms, sleeping peacefully… and making the cutest little snoring noise I've ever heard."

 _Well now, there's a romantic line._ "I only do that when I'm congested," Bonnie informed him, trying not to sound embarrassed.

"That's all right. Urey told me once I sound like a frog on helium when I snore."

"I think I fell asleep too soon last night then," Bonnie grinned. "I've never heard a frog on helium."

"Neither have I. You'll have to tell me what it sounds like if I snore later."

Bonnie chuckled, though it turned into a cough almost immediately. This was how sleeping over ought to be… easy, friendly, without any awkward tensions. "I think I can manage that."

* * *

"Well, I'd say that was some good work," Trevor Bass grinned as he held up his mug of beer.

"You won't hear me arguing," Ted agreed as he, Felix, and Rochelle Wales lifted their own beverages to follow suit.

"We did a lot of good," Rochelle agreed with a nod before she sipped her beer, "Though it would have been nice to have gotten in on the action."

"Next time I'll remember to be a gentleman and leave someone for you to pummel," Ted promised. He couldn't be in a much better mood if he tried. Not only had they succeeded in their mission, and stopped the alchemists that were causing the worst of the earthquakes, but he had gotten back to Central to find a promotion waiting for him. He was finally no longer the only Major in the group. Lieutenant Colonel Ted Elric; he liked how it sounded.

It wasn't particularly late in the evening. They had met right after dinner so that Felix could join them, but then get home to his wife, who was certainly put out at how much he had been gone lately, even if she didn't blame Felix.

"I appreciate the gesture, but I can find my own people to beat up," Rochelle assured him. "Why don't you and Sifter work on finding your own dates instead? Genesis here is up on both of you on that one."

"I could have brought a date," Trevor replied, looking mildly annoyed. "They were just all…busy."

"What, washing their hair?" Rochelle snickered.

Ted grinned and took a long drink, giving himself time to think of a good comeback. He hadn't really dated since the incident in Xing, though lately it was more out of a lack of interest in any of the girls he had recently met. Losing out on Clarina hurt, but it was an ache that was starting to fade into the background.

Unfortunately, Rochelle's teasing did not only extend to Trevor. "What about you, Proteus?"

Ted shrugged, trying to keep is casual. "Haven't seen a girl I want to ask out lately. When I see one I want, I'll ask her out."

"What about her?"

Ted glanced over his shoulder to see where Trevor was gesturing. Over by the pool table was a girl who was, he had to admit, _very_ attractive. She wasn't the only girl there, since she was with friends, but it was impossible not to miss her. She was tall-well, taller than him- with long, dark curly hair and dusky skin. She wore a just-above knee length tight plum colored skirt, a sleeveless black top, and when she turned to laugh at a friend, he could just see her deep brown eyes. "What about her?" he tossed it back at Trevor.

"Why don't you ask her out?"

"She's young enough to be my niece," Trevor shook his head. "I prefer 'em a little more my own age."

"There's a first," Rochelle gave a short laughing snort.

She had a nice smile. Ted watched them finish their game. The brunette turned and headed towards the bar. A path that would take them right past Ted's table. Well, what the hell? It couldn't hurt to toss caution to the wind and make a move, could it? Ted grinned. "Wagers?"

"If she goes out with you, I owe you beers for a month," Trevor grinned.

"If she doesn't go out with you, you owe _us_ drinks for a month," Rochelle countered.

"Deal." Ted drained the last sip in his glass, stood, and casually fell in behind her moving towards the bar.

"Hey, Clint," the girl smiled at the bartender and set down her cocktail glass. "Another sparkler." She had a pleasant, alto voice.

"Sure thing, 'Nique." Clint smiled and took her glass.

Ted stepped up to the bar beside her, set down his glass, and waited. "If you'd put the spin more on the right side of the ball, you'd have sunk that last one," he commented casually.

The girl glanced sideways at him, and a little smile played on her lips. "Oh really?"

Ted nodded. "Basic physics."

That got a laugh. "Do you always try to pick up girls in bars with science trivia?"

"No, though I'm known for offering a lot of advice on how to win at pool," he countered, offering his hand. "Ted Elric."

She smiled, then took his hand. "Monique Vonet."

Clint brought her drink over. "What'll it be?" he asked Ted as he took his glass.

"The Cretan Dark beer," Ted ordered, keeping his focus on Monique. "So, I wasn't kidding about the pool move. I can show you how to pin that spin on it if you want."

"You're sure?" she looked more interested now. "Won't your friends mind?"

"Nah. Will yours?"

Monique chuckled and her eyes took on a predatory gleam. "Only after I beat them."


	21. Chapter 21

**December 4** **th** **, 1985**

"I think that's about all we can really do about it," Ed told Aldon as they sat around the table with the rest of the Resembool town council. He had spent a lot of time over the past weeks –him and Urey— carefully probing the land in the area with alchemy, and seeing what could be done to undo some of the damage to the ground itself done by the two alchemists who had been agitating the fault line for their own selfish purposes.

Not that it had paid out in the end. They, along with their boss, were currently in jail and on trial. It didn't look good for any of them, though the results would probably be a good long prison sentence and hefty fines.

"Will the earthquakes continue?" Orrin Jones asked from the other end of the table.

Ed shrugged. "I wish I could tell you no, but it seems unlikely. They've been pushing at that fault line. We're lucky they were stopped as quickly as they were, but there's only so much I can do to try and move landmasses. Starting an earthquake with alchemy is a lot easier than getting them to stop again."

"Will they get worse?"

"That remains to be seen, but I've done my best to relieve the tension on the fault." Ed leaned back in his chair. "So hopefully things will settle down again. We might get some smaller tremors for a while, but that's all we can really hope for I think."

"Well, it's better than what we were getting," Aldon agreed. "So what about our other project?"

"Making every building in Resembool earthquake proof?" Ed smiled. "Well, that may take longer, but it's good progress. I recommend you consider adding some new requirements to the city building codes for anything new."

Aldon grinned. "Already on it."

 **December 5** **th** **, 1985**

There were many days that Gloria Fischer loved her classes. This afternoon was not one of semester was almost over, and every course had decided to have a major paper or project due the week before finals, on top of final exams. She had been working non-stop all week, in every spare moment between classes, after classes, and even once when she woke up in the middle of the night with an idea for the third paragraph of her paper for _History of Amestrian Journalism._

It was Friday afternoon, and she ought to be feeling relaxed with the weekend ahead of her, but she wasn't. Not that it was anyone's fault but her own for taking a challenging workload. She had never been one to take the easy way out of anything. Still, the idea of starting right in on her projects was daunting. She poured herself a cup of fruit tea she had pulled out of the refrigerator they shared in the floor lounge, returned to her room, and sat down on her bed under the window, while there was still some daylight left, and opened her textbook, _Writing for News_.

Less than a paragraph into it, her phone rang. Gloria sighed, shut the book, and leaned over, grabbing the phone off her desk. "Hello?"

"Hello, Gloria?" a vaguely familiar male voice with an unusual accent said over the phone.

"This is she," she replied, wondering who was calling.

"Oh, good, she gave me the right number. I thought she might have been teasing me." The voice sounded relieved, and chuckled. "It's Alexei; Alexei Deviatovski."

Florence's half-Drachman cousin! That explained the accent. "Oh! Of course. How are you?" And why was he calling _her_?

"Well," he replied. "I just got into town, actually, and was wondering if you might like to join me this afternoon. I am going to be at the opening of the new Drachman Art exhibit at the museum. Afterwards, we could have dinner."

He was asking her out? Gloria had certainly enjoyed his company well enough the last time he came to visit, but that entire day had been spoiled for her by her mother's cancer diagnosis. She couldn't imagine she had been particularly pleasant to be around. Still, it was far better than sitting around her room feeling sorry for herself while all her friends were out on dates. "That sounds great," she replied promptly. "What time should I meet you at the museum?"

"The unveiling starts at six."

"I'll see you there."

Gloria felt an excited little flutter as she hopped off the bed and went to her closet. Just what did a girl wear out for a museum opening and dinner with her friend's older cousin? She couldn't even be sure this counted as a date, since he hadn't clarified if there was romantic intent, or he just wanted company to talk to. She knew Florence wasn't available; she was out with her boyfriend.

That didn't mean she couldn't look her best. Since it was winter, her options were limited, and Gloria eventually settled on black slacks and a fitted emerald green blouse. She put on her favorite gold pendant, which dangled right in the center of the V of the blouse. Then she wrapped up tight in her long black coat, and headed out. She should have just enough time to get to the museum and find him.

Thankfully the busses were running on time, and Gloria arrived fifteen minutes early. Eager, and curious to find out why Alexei was here for this particular unveiling, other than interest, she looked around for the tall, handsome blond with the hooked nose.

"Gloria!" He found her first, appearing out of the crowd, face flushed from the chilly air, but looking comfortable. He wore only a thick-cabled sweater in burgundy and cream, and tan slacks. "I'm glad you could make it."

"I needed a break from my books. Thank you for inviting me," she smiled back. His dark blue eyes were as deep and merry as she recalled. "So why _are_ you here?" Gloria asked curiously as they moved towards the front of the crowd.

Alexei paused, then laughed and gestured to the badge hanging off the camera around his neck. "I'm here to cover the opening."

"You're with the press?" That hadn't occurred to Gloria, who had completely missed it if Alexei had told her what he did for a living during his last visit.

"I'm a writer," Alexei explained, "for _Cultural Monthly_."

Gloria knew the magazine. It published a wide range of articles on a variety of subjects: art, cuisine, architecture, philosophy, and fascinating historical topics. Sometimes there were even articles analyzing more current events. It was high quality writing, and she had read several copies. It would make perfect sense for him to be covering the opening of Amestris' first Drachman art exhibit. She wondered if she had read any of his previous work without knowing it. "That explains it," she admitted, feeling a little bad she had missed seeing the badge. He had to know she was majoring in journalism herself. "So I should expect to be able to read all about this exhibit next month."

"That's the plan." Alexei nodded as they reached the front of the gathering crowd and made it over to the press area. "We'll cover the opening ceremony, then I'll talk to the curator and we'll get the press tour. After that, on to dinner."

"Sounds great." Gloria was about to ask how she was going in when Alexei took something from one of the museum staff and turned, slipping a press pass over her head.

"Now, you are my assistant." Alexei winked.

It turned out to be a fascinating exhibit. Gloria stayed quiet and out of the way, following Alexei and watching him work, almost more than she found herself looking at the display of what was truly beautiful Drachman artwork and artifacts from their history. It was all on loan from the Imperial Museum of Drachma, which had been open for over three hundred years. It had certainly outlived several Drachman governments.

She was more intrigued by Alexei, who was not only scribbling furiously, and asking very specific, culturally relevant and pointed questions, but taking his own photos as well. She made a note to try some of the more unusual angles he attempted, and ask about the choices later.

The tour lasted an hour, and afterwards Gloria followed him back out into the street. "Thank you for inviting me," she said again, smiling. "I haven't had that much fun in a long time."

"I thought you would appreciate it," he beamed back. "Florence always says you have an eye for detail and artwork."

"Does she really?"

"No," he chuckled, looking slightly abashed. "But I thought it might sound odd if I said I noticed that about you the last time we came to the museum."

He had been paying that much attention to her? "If you noticed that, then maybe you can guess what I'm thinking about where we should go eat?" she challenged him, teasing.

He looked at her thoughtfully for a moment, then shrugged. "I'm afraid I'm not that good," he admitted.

Gloria shook her head, and tried not to shiver. It was dark now, and getting cold enough it felt like it might snow. "Then I should tell you that they just opened a little Drachman restaurant a couple of blocks away, and I've been very curious to try it out."

His eyes lit up. "Really? Now, that does sound interesting."

Having agreed on a place, Gloria was quite happy that they walked briskly to their destination, though Alexei seemed to find it amusing that she was cold. What did he expect? He was from colder climates than she was. Even though he hadn't grown up in Drachma, his parents lived outside of North City. At least, that was what she remembered Florence telling her.

The restaurant wasn't full, but it was doing good business. They were seated within a few minutes, at a table for two in a cozy back corner, far from the door. The decorations were minimal, and not nearly as pricy or authentic as what they had just seen, but at least they weren't tacky.

"Looks a lot like my Aunt Tula's living room," Alexei admitted. "Let's hope the food is good."

"I'm told it's good." Not that she would know authentic Drachman food if it bit her. Gloria looked at the menu. There were a lot of very interesting dishes on here, and while she had always been raised in a family that ate a wide variety of foods from different cultures, it was humbling to realize she had only heard of may half of the dishes on the menu.

"What would you recommend? I'll try whatever you think I'll like."

Alexei looked the menu over carefully, but didn't respond immediately. When the server came over, Alexei asked a question in Drachman, and she was startled to see the server smile, nod, and respond in kind. He turned back to her. "He recommends the cabbage and sausage soup, with a glass of the Petra red wine. That is, if you like wine."

"I do," she replied. She didn't drink much, but so far she liked wine more than beer, which had tasted foul to her.

He smiled and turned back to the server, who took down an order, and left. "I think you'll enjoy this."

The server returned quickly with the wine, which he poured for them, and a basket of what appeared to be relatively unassuming fresh hot bread rolls.

"Ladies first," Alexei gestured to the food.

Gloria refrained from making a comment about the gallantry, but she took a roll and bit into it- and almost dropped it. "What is that?" She stared down at her roll, the middle of which was full of warm, greenish…goo.

Alexei laughed. "It is cheese, with herbs. That's why it's green."

Cheese, of course. Gloria shook her head, then looked up at him. "You _knew_."

"Of course I did. They're some of my favorites." Now grinning broadly, he reached for a roll and took a large bite, chewed, and swallowed. "My father makes them all the time."

Now feeling a little foolish, Gloria took another bite, and savored the zest of the herbs, and the bright, flavorful cheese. The bread itself had a slightly crusty outside and a dense texture that went well with the cheese. "I can see why. It's delicious!" Probably terrible for you, but delicious. She followed it with a slow sip of the wine, which also turned out to be very good. Possibly the best she'd had.

"So, you write for a cultural magazine, enjoy museums, and your father is Drachman. That's really all I know about you."

He grinned. "Looking for an interview?"

"I just like to know more about interesting people, especially if they thought it was worth inviting me out to dinner."

"Fair enough." Alexei settled back in his chair. "Ask me a question; anything."

" _Anything?_ "

"Anything you won't be sorry you asked."

Gloria couldn't remember the last time conversation had come so easily with someone she only sort of knew. By the time they finished the light salad source, she knew about Alexei's parents, and how his father had been a reluctant participant in the war to begin with, and how he had dared to desert in order to remain in Amestris with his mother.  
By the time the soup came, she knew he had two younger sisters, that he was a fan of Drachman hockey, but also Amestrian baseball, cheering for the North City team every year. Despite his large frame, he was apparently not great at either sport. He just showed his enthusiasm for watching them, and he was a fan of the ancient Xingese philosophers.

Over the flavorful sausage soup, which had not just cabbage but several other vegetables, and a thick dollop of cream that was meant to be stirred in, the conversation turned to Gloria, and she told him all about growing up in Central: her little brother, her parents, her plans for journalism. She didn't want to be just a reporter, or a pretty face on a broadcast; she wanted to do real investigative work, and write pieces that mattered.

"I think that's commendable of you," Alexei said as dessert was brought out. "Anything worth writing should make people think about the world we live in… and how they want to live in it."

Gloria picked up one of the little crescent-roll shaped cookies. His comment made her feel warm inside. "I couldn't agree more." She took a nibble, and found the cookie to be filled with honey, almonds, and dried cherries. "Wow. Is there anything about Drachman food that isn't good?"

Alexei's midnight-dark eyes twinkled merrily above his glass as he took another sip of his wine. "How much exercise I need to get to eat it on a regular basis."

Which had her curious. He had said he was bad at his favorite sports, but he was too muscular to spend all day at a desk. "And just what _do_ you do for that?" she asked.

"Wrestling."

 **December 11** **th** **, 1985**

The only thing that could possibly have made this afternoon better, Urey thought, was if Raina could have joined them. He and Yurian had been enjoying a father-son day since that morning, when they had attempted to build a dog out of snow in the yard. There had been a light fall in the night, which turned out to be just enough to scrape together to play with. After the snow dog-which was rather small- and an exuberant snow-ball fight, they had come inside, drunk lots of hot chocolate, and watched children's programming on the television until lunch. Now, having eaten with Grandpa and Granny, he was washing the dishes while Yurian was very determinedly working on a drawing at the table.  
It would have been nice to have Raina here too. Perhaps she'd be sitting at the table grading, or working on her own class crafts. It was too bad she was swamped with work and had very apologetically insisted she needed the day to keep up with her work.

Urey finished the last dish, and wiped his hands on a towel. Now was as good a time as any. He joined Yurian. "What are you drawing?"

"Doggies," Yurian replied, pointing at several brown, yellow, and black and white animals that could have been dogs, or cows. There were also people, and a house. Judging from the blue flowers outside it, the house looked like Raina's. "That's me," he pointed to the smallest stick-person. "That's Miss Raina," he pointed to the one with long hair. "And that's you."

Urey looked at the picture, and laughed. "Hey, I'm not that fat anymore."

Yurian giggled.

Urey hugged his son as he sat down in the next chair. "Hey, I've got a question for you."

"Yeah?" Yurian looked up at him. "What's that?"

"I wanted to know what you'd think if Miss Raina was part of our family?"

His son caught on quick, and his eyes got bigger. "You mean, she'd be my mommy?" he asked very seriously.

"If she wanted to." Urey nodded. "Would that be okay with you?"

Yurian smiled. "Yeah! Miss Raina's awesome."

Well, that settled that question, not that Urey had been particularly worried about his son's being okay with Raina being part of the family. He adored his former teacher. "I'm glad. Now, this is a secret between us, okay? Until I ask her about it."

"Okay, Daddy." Yurian nodded vigorously. "I won't tell a squirrel."

"Squirrel?" Urey chuckled. "It's _soul,_ son."

"Yeah, I meant that."

 **December 12** **th** **, 1985**

The Elric family in Resembool was in a state of chaos for several days leading up to the winter holidays. Since Krista and James were finally having their family party-in-lieu-of-a-wedding-reception, anyone who could get off work and go, was doing so. Which meant that everyone was scrambling at once, Urey included. Grandpa Ed and Granny were going. His parents were going. Even Reichart, Deanna, and their brood were going. Thankfully his parents' friends Ollie and Kit had offered to watch the houses and pets while they were away.

There was just one person that Urey wanted to bring along that he desperately hoped would agree. He waited until after dinner at Raina's, while they were sitting on her couch, watching a movie. "Hey, what are your plans for the holidays?" he asked, trying to sound casual.

Raina smiled and shrugged. "I'm going down to see Mom and Dad in a few days, why?"

"Well, I was wondering if maybe you'd like to come with me to Central?" Urey hadn't been able to think of a smooth or sophisticated way to ask. "Just for a few days. You could still go down and visit your parents afterwards. I'll even come with you if you want. I'd just, really like to enjoy the holidays with you. So would Yurian," he added, grinning. "I have it on good authority."

"I'm sure you do." Raina looked thoughtful, and he let her think it over. "You know, I haven't been to Central since I was a kid. That sounds like fun. You're sure your family won't mind?"

Mind? They'd probably have been disappointed if she didn't. Urey was well aware that his parents, grandparents, _siblings_ , all of them would be quite happy to see him happily settled again, particularly with Raina. "I'm sure they won't mind," he assured her, before she kissed him, and his thoughts went elsewhere.

Now, all he had to do was plan the perfect proposal.


	22. Chapter 22

**December 18** **th** **, 1985**

Every Elric house in Central was going to be crowded for the holidays, and Alphonse could not have been happier about it. With as serious as things had been lately, he thought that having family around and festivities to enjoy would be the pick-me-up Alyse and her family needed. Michio and Kamika both arrived back from college on the same day. The contingent arrived from Resembool just two days later. The only member of Al's family who wouldn't be home for the holidays was Minxia, and that was because she and Thrakos had promised to be in Pylos with his family since they had been traveling so much of late.

Edward and Winry were staying with Ethan's family, of course, in their old house. Even with Lily and Randy, and Eamon, returning home from college. Gloria was on the same train as Lily and Randy.

Aldon, Cassie, Reichart, Deanna, and all of the children were staying with Franz, James, and Krista, since theirs was the next biggest house with the most rooms, and Urey, Yurian, and –not too surprising to Al— Raina would be staying at his own house. Alphonse had chosen not to comment. Having met her several times, Al and Elicia both liked the young woman quite a bit. Al would be more shocked if there wasn't a wedding proposal by the end of the visit.

So he wasn't at all surprised when, just a couple of days after everyone arrived, Urey asked Al if they wouldn't mind watching Yurian for the night while he took Raina out on a date.

Al couldn't help a knowing smile. "This wouldn't happen to be _the_ date would it?"

Urey chuckled. "I hope it's less obvious to Raina."

"Should be. Somehow, girls always seem to be surprised that we ever get around to asking." Which seemed funny to Al, since it was a natural step for many serious couples after a point. Maybe they just didn't know as much as they pretended to know that the point had been reached. "Good luck."

"Thanks."

He didn't know what Urey had planned, but when he and Raina headed out a few hours later, Al was too busy learning all about current children's television programming to worry.

* * *

Urey had spent the last several days discussing with Raina what she wanted to see during their trip to Central. It had been a natural topic of conversation, that conveniently doubled as research. Naturally, Raina had wanted to go shopping. There were lots of stores that a person could only visit in Central. The first couple of days of their trip, so far, had been mostly shopping and things that they could do with Yurian. They had visited lots of department stores, Amestris' biggest ice cream shop, and the Central Zoo, which had certainly been Yurian's favorite, since it was three times larger than the zoo near their house.

Urey had enjoyed that too, particularly since his white tiger—the one he and Uncle Al had rescued from becoming a chimera in Drachma—Fortune, was still alive. He doubted she recognized him, but it was nice to see the old girl still alive and well. Yurian called her "Daddy's tiger" the entire time.

Tonight was different. Urey had promised Raina a romantic evening out, just the two of them, and it needed to be not only memorable, but it needed to be perfect. At least, that was how he felt. Perfect, but very _them._ He couldn't afford the most expensive restaurants in Central, though Grandpa Ed had offered to cover it. Urey was sure he had figured out Urey's plan as well even though he hadn't said anything.

Urey wanted to do this on his own. He'd been saving up for months. He had slipped out briefly on the first day in Central to purchase the ring he'd been thinking about. It had been in a Silverman's' catalog, so he knew he could get it in Central. He'd even managed to sneak one of Raina's rings out of the house with him, briefly, to make sure it was sized correctly. His sister, Callie, had been working the jewelry counter, and had been _more_ than happy to help him get the perfect ring.

That had just left the time, place, and appropriate lead up.

"So, where are we going?" Raina asked, eyes bright with curiosity as they strolled into downtown Central.

"First, the Concert Hall," Urey smiled, pulling two tickets out of his pocket. "The Central Symphony Orchestra is doing a new series that is selections of ancient music from Creta and Aerugo. It's supposed to be historically accurate, and they've even brought in replicas of some of the ancient instruments as well. So some of the pieces will be entirely accurate."

Raina squeezed his arm. "I love it!"

The concert turned out to be as enjoyable as Urey had hoped. Given their shared love of cultural anthropology, it was not just about enjoying the music, but reading the information in the program that detailed the research that had been done by several music historians to make the concert possible.

Afterwards it was off to dinner, and Urey had decided to take Ian's excellent recommendation of a romantic little Xingese restaurant, where they were seated in a little garden, with a fish and lily pond. Urey couldn't imagine how it stayed so warm, until he looked up and realized that it had a green-house style glassed in roof, that could be opened in the summer. The panels were currently slid closed to provide plenty of warmth. The garden was little with little twinkling lights draped around the bushes, offering enough ambient light that it wasn't too dark. That, and the candles on the table, made everything glow with soft warmth; especially Raina's beautiful face.

They ordered several items to sample between them: plates of sushi, a sweet-and-sour vegetable soup, pork dumplings, steamed vegetables, shrimp in a coconut glaze, and topped it off with little soft pastries with an almost gel-like texture in the middle that came in a variety of flavors. All of it was delicious, and washed down with a light, fruity white wine imported from Xing. It had also been one of Ian's recommendations, and the soft citrusy peachy hints were much to Urey's liking… and Raina's he discovered. He had eaten more than he intended, but had no regrets. Besides, what he had planned would certainly work it off.

As they stepped back out into the chilly night, their breath fogging up the lamplight in front of them, he offered her his arm. "We're not done yet," he assured her.

"A wonderful concert, an amazing dinner, and we're not done?" Raina smiled at him as she took his arm, then kissed his cheek. "What could make tonight better, besides a private place where we might not be interrupted?"

Urey was glad he had gotten past blushing when she said things like that. Raina did not often, but when she did, she wasn't at all abashed about it. Urey was sure her boldness in _saying_ what they were both thinking was at least partially brought on by the wine. Staying at Al and Elicia's, they hadn't been truly alone much. Raina had gotten the guest room, at Urey's insistence, while he and Yurian took the couches in the living room. "Well, that would certainly be perfect," he agreed, smiling mysteriously. "But I think you'll agree this is just as good."

They walked down to the park that ran along the river that cut through Central, and Urey could see their destination well before they arrived. For the holiday tourist season, the park had been done up in millions of tiny lights. They were wrapped around bushes, trees, arches. They made tunnels, and there were even lanterns placed on the edges of fountains and on top of some of the statues. Most of the lights were white, but some were blue, and others soft lavender that fell in cascades like wisteria blossoms.  
Raina was enchanted. Smiling, Urey led her through the garden, not forcing conversation, but marveling at the lights, the attention to detail, and the way they played off Raina's features. Together they walked to the very center of the gardens, a low-walled labyrinth that wound to another fountain, this one not running in the cold, but lit with over a dozen of little floating lanterns shaped like lotus flowers, and in all colors. "It's beautiful," Raina gasped softly.

"It is," Urey agreed, "Though not nearly as beautiful as the company I'm sharing it with."

"Urey Elric," she chuckled, smiling coyly at him. "Are you trying to be poetic?"

"Am I succeeding?" He asked as he sat down on the edge of the fountain and motioned for her to join him. She did, leaning once more into his side. He slipped his arm around her shoulder. This was the quietest part of the gardens; the ones that took the longest to walk to, and so Urey had been betting on it being the most private. He was glad to see he was right. His free hand slipped into his pocket, where he felt the little box that had been there all evening.

"Maybe," Raina chuckled. "Try some more."

Well, if she wanted poetry…. Urey couldn't have asked for a better opening if he had written a script. "All right then," he stood, got down on his knee, and held one arm up dramatically as if he were posing. "Is this the correct position for poetry confessing one's undying love?"

Raina was shaking her head, though it was with amusement. "Why yes, I believe that's how it goes in the movies."

"Good." _You can do this, Urey._ It didn't matter that he had done this before, in another year, in another lifetime. It was still just as new, just as exciting, and just as terrifying.

"So…a poem, made up on the spot… by me. Raina, radiant creature, who thrills my very heart, now that we're together I hope we never part… So I hope that it's not just me, but also you can see, we're meant to be forever…. Raina, will you marry me?"

She had gone so still as he brought up the ring, that for a moment, Urey was afraid the poetry had been too terrible.

When she tackled him with an enthusiastic kiss, he stopped worrying and just kissed her back as he tried to keep from pitching over into a flower bed. "So, can I take that as a yes?" he asked, knowing he was grinning like a fool, and not caring one bit.

"I'll give you a thousand yesses," Raina assured him as he slipped the ring onto her finger. "Every day." She kissed him again passionately enough that Urey was grateful he had thought of one more thing in his evening planning.

When she finally stopped, and they both got to their feet, he grinned. "How'd you like to see the inside of the famous Central Plaza Hotel?"

 **December 20** **th** **, 1985**

Ethan was happy to have his family back under one roof. Eamon was back from Pylos, looking tan, fit, and happy, though already pining for his girlfriend, which Aeddan refused to leave him alone about. Having his parents in the house was a lot like old times, too. They had settled right back into their downstairs room, and it was almost like they never left. Except for when things happened, like Dad complaining that they had rearranged the kitchen cabinets and he couldn't find anything.

It was that kind of evening now, with everyone scrambling to get dinner made and on the table. Lily and Randy were due to arrive from the train station any time. Lia and his father were actually doing the bulk of the cooking, while Mom and Eamon set the table. Aeddan had taken the dog out back, which left Ethan to get glasses and drinks on the table for everyone.

He had just finished when the doorbell rang. "I've got it," he called out, heading to the door and opening it.

Lily and Randy stood on the porch, with Randy holding both suitcases. They were both bundled up in bulky winter coats. "We're here!" Lily exclaimed unnecessarily as they came in, and Ethan closed the door. "I'd forgotten how cold it gets," she commented as Randy set down their bags and reached out to help Lily remove her coat.

Ethan almost swallowed his tongue as his daughter turned around, revealing a distinctly tell-tale bulge under her clothes.

His baby girl was pregnant.

His eyes tracked up to find Lily grinning at him as if she had anticipated his response. "Surprise!"

Randy looked like he was trying to decide if it was safer to stay or run.

Ethan would put his money on running.

Eamon poked his head around the corner, grinning broadly. "Wow, sis. I thought it was called the _freshman_ fifteen." Behind him, Ethan could hear footsteps as everyone came to the door.

Lily punched her twin in the arm even as he hugged her. "You're terrible."

He feigned an expression of hurt. "Me? Who didn't tell her _twin_ she was pregnant?"

"I'm not _that_ pregnant."

"Dad's expression would say otherwise."

"Wow, sis," Aeddan chimed in. "What'd you do, eat a melon?"

Lily turned to face Ethan again, ignoring her youngest brother, hands behind her back, smiling impishly. "So, Daddy, care to take a guess?"

Guess? Ethan was about to say that no, he very well didn't want to try and guess, when Lia came into view with a 'don't spoil this ' expression. Ethan sighed inside, and made himself look at his daughter, while trying to run some mental math. She could be as far along as her early second trimester, much as she was showing for a first pregnancy. Though he wasn't sure she'd have kept it quiet that long…even for a surprise factor. But there was a look in her eyes… like she knew something he didn't, and a sudden idea came to him. She was still hiding something that she thought he should pick up on.

 _No._ "You want a guess?" he looked his daughter in the eyes. "I'm going to say you're… thirteen weeks, and… it's twins."

From his daughter's delighted expression, he had certainly hit the mark. "Close," she chuckled as she hugged him. "Yes, it's twins, but only twelve weeks."

That announcement elicited delighted responses from Lia and her brothers, and even his own parents, as Ethan let her go so they could all gather around and offer their own hugs and congratulations.

Ethan glanced at Randy, who smiled sheepishly and shrugged. _It comes from your side of the family,_ he seemed to say.

Finally, it was Lily who ended the chatter with a declaration of "Is dinner ready? I'm starving!" Which immediately led to a flurry of table setting and everyone sitting down to eat. Though the questions certainly didn't slow down, and the entire conversation had been hijacked by talk about the babies… plural. Lia and Lily were already comparing pregnancy symptoms from when Lia had carried Lily and her brother. His mother was just as involved, and Ethan was quietly glad that he was sitting at the other end of the table, where he could adjust to the news in peace.

It wasn't that it was bad news. They were married; children were a natural outcome of that. But they were only in their second year of college. Still, Ethan didn't want to ruin Lily's obvious pleasure at the turn of events. She looked radiant and happy, and so he kept his mouth shut, taking comfort in the details that began to come out in the conversation as they discussed the future.

Their apartment was big enough for a nursery, and they were both still working as well as taking classes. As long as they worked the schedule carefully, they wouldn't even have to put the babies in daycare much, if at all, for them to finish classes. Several of their friends had already offered to help with babysitting.

"Sounds like you've thought it all through," Ethan begrudgingly admitted to Randy.

His son-in-law looked a little relieved by the words of approval. "We've had to. One seemed reasonable. Two… well we probably shouldn't have been surprised that there's two of them." His slightly wide-eyed expression when he mentioned them made Ethan feel a little better. The boy deserved to know the fear as well as the joys that came with fathering twins.

* * *

He did not feel the cold. The cold was not part of him. He was empty, and calm…still as a windless night.

"Find inner peace yet?"

"Working on it," Ethan replied without opening his eyes, but the near-calm was lost, and he could feel the cold of the wooden deck beneath his legs and backside.

"You look like you're trying too hard." Lia kissed his cheek. "A little stressed about Lily?"

Ethan sighed and opened his eyes to look at his wife. "Aren't you?"

Lia wrapped her arms around his shoulders. "I practically stalked you for _years_ , followed you to Xing, nursed you back from the brink of death, and then got waylaid by a war with Drachma before I managed to tie you down long enough to start a family." Lia's smile was a little smug. "Our daughter gets her impatience from you, Ethan, not me. You heard them over dinner, they've thought this through. They have a place to live, an income, and a plan. Just because their timeline isn't ours doesn't mean there's anything wrong with it. Besides, it means we get to be grandparents!"

"You sound far too happy about getting old."

"Who said anything about old?" Lia reached out and gave him a hug. "I'm looking forward to cuddling babies I won't have to deliver myself. Our children may age, but we don't. We just get more awesome."

Ethan smiled at her. "Do you really believe that?"

"Of course I do. Just look at your parents."


	23. Chapter 23

**December 22** **nd** **, 1985**

Despite the informality of a just-family wedding reception in theory, in practice Franz had still ended up renting a small hall for Krista and James' congratulatory party; the one they had insisted on holding off on until life was settled, and everyone in the family could reasonably make it to Central. This meant, of course, that the place was packed even with just most of the extended family in attendance.

Franz was not at all surprised to find that there were many reasons to celebrate, even if their marriage was the primary reason for the gathering. While there was certainly cake, plenty of food, and lots of congratulations, Franz saw more than one circle that cycled through with well-wishers. Urey and Raina's very-recent engagement was exciting news, as was Lily and Randy's expectation of twins. There was more than enough to keep the family astir with excitement.

Which made it interesting to find himself standing in the middle of both of his brothers-in-law, whom the last two events affected more directly. Aldon looked pleased, and a little relieved, to see Urey—and Yurian—so clearly happy. Raina looked comfortably at home in the crowd. It helped, Franz supposed, that she already knew the entire Resembool portion of the family fairly well, and anyone who had visited in the past several months. She had even met Lily and Randy, and seemed quite delighted with their news.

On his other side, Ethan looked outwardly calm, but Franz had learned to read the more subtle signs of Sara's youngest brother. Doctors had good poker faces. However, he had gotten to know Ethan very well over the years. A little better than he knew Aldon. He wouldn't have said Ethan was _unhappy_ about the news of his impending first grandchildren, but he didn't look nearly as happy as Lia did about it. Lia was bubbling and happy and nearly as excited as her daughter. Ethan sipped his coffee and looked considering.

"It's too late to kill your son-in-law," Franz commented quietly. "Not that staring at him would be particularly effective."

Ethan looked at him. "It would make Lily pretty unhappy," he commented evenly, as if he had actually been considering the possibility.

Franz smiled. "Don't worry, you'll like grandfather-hood. It's a lot less work than raising them."

"Yeah, but mine aren't even all out of the house yet."

"Aeddan will be soon enough," Aldon chimed in, grinning. "Then you can discover the joys of living with just your wife again."

"As if you've ever done that," Ethan quipped. "You took Yurian in before Callie moved out."

"And I'm looking forward to the experience." Aldon nodded towards Urey. "As soon as they get married, Yurian moves in with them permanently, as it should be."

"It's Franz here who's crazy." Ethan changed the direction of conversation. "Inviting James and Krista to move in and repopulate the house with kids."

"Living alone isn't all it's cracked up to be," Franz replied, drinking his coffee. He had tried that long enough. If Sara had been alive… but she wasn't, and the house was too quiet.

He didn't want the sympathetic looks he got from both sides, but he could accept them. Franz had been rather grateful, truly, that Sara's death had not distanced him from the rest of the family. The Elrics just didn't work that way.

"We've been wondering about that," Aldon admitted. "James mentioned you actually tried to move out."

"I didn't need a big place for myself." Franz shrugged. "But they wouldn't accept the house unless I came with it, like part of the furniture." He meant the quip to be humorous, but it sounded a little flat, even on his ears.

"You know," Aldon commented, "No one will hold it against you."

He didn't elaborate, but Franz knew what he meant. They weren't talking about the house, they were talking about moving on, finding someone else. If he dated again… a big if.

"Thanks," Franz replied. "I appreciate that. I really do. I'm not sure it'll ever happen though." He shrugged. First, it had been too soon. Some days, even over three years later it was too soon. Now, he didn't have the time to put into creating a new relationship. He had found his love, wooed her, married her, raised their children together. That part of his life had been completed and perfect and now… now it was over.

"Oh, we know there's no one else out there like Sara," Ethan assured him. "We're just saying we promise not to kill you if you ever decide to settle for second-best."  
Franz couldn't help chuckling. "As long as I'm babysitting the entire Amestrian Army, I don't think you need to worry about that."

* * *

Ian would have liked it if Bonnie could have come with him this afternoon, but he'd had off and she hadn't. There were costumes due for a film he wasn't in that needed final touches before they started shooting tomorrow, so Bonnie was slaving away late in the costume shop.

Still, he was enjoying getting to spend several hours with all of his family in one place. Callie had gotten the afternoon off work, and didn't have class. He didn't get to see his baby sister often, even with her living in Central. She had gotten settled in Central and used to her job at Silverman's before starting school, having decided she wanted to do professional photography.

Ted was actually in town between missions, and seemed to have successfully gotten over his romantic hang-up about Clarina…and about Krista. He was clearly happy for James and Krista, and there wasn't a hint of jealousy as he talked animatedly with them. Ian had always been able to read his youngest brother; Ted wasn't one for keeping his feelings hidden.

His older brothers looked relaxed and happy for the most part. Coran and Gale had their automail work, Reichart and Deanna their huge family, and now Urey finally had something to smile about.

"It's about time," Ian grinned when he finally got to talk to Urey, while Raina was distracted by the babble of women who were already discussing wedding plans.

His brother grinned back, and shrugged. "I'm a little surprised no one's told us to slow down," he admitted softly.

"We can tell a good thing when we see it." Ian might have been more worried if he hadn't seen them together a lot during his visits to Resembool that year, but he could see nothing at all wrong with their relationship. "Though it's a little frustrating that you've managed to get yourself engaged to _two_ beautiful women before I've even managed it once."

"How are things going?" Urey asked softly.

Ian smiled reassuringly. "Good, actually. We're having a little party at my place for the new year, and she's okay with our friends from work knowing we're officially a couple." For Bonnie, he knew that was a big step forward, and he appreciated it. Taking slow steps had not proven to be at all unpleasant. In fact, he found he liked it.

Urey chuckled. "Who would have thought out of the two of us you'd be the one taking it slow. I'm glad it's going well."

"I worry when I see heads together, especially in this family."

Ian turned and looked at Grandpa Ed's smug face. He chuckled. "Just brother talk," he replied easily. "Actually, I've been wanting to talk to you, Grandpa. I need your expert advice… for work."

Ed's eyebrows vanished into his hair. "You need _my_ advice?"

Ian nodded. "Yeah. See, I've got this new project I'm working on. I'm playing _you._ "

"You're kidding!"

Ian shook his head. "Nope. They're finally making a movie about you and Uncle Al. It's not publically announced yet, but if I'm going to play _you_ there are a lot of things I need to ask you."

Ed's grin turned slightly feral. "Well, I am the expert on me."

Ian made a mental note to learn that facial expression.

 **December 28** **th** **, 1985**

It had been years since Alphonse and Elicia had thrown a large party for the new year, but this one, Al thought, was certainly already one of his favorites. There was a heavy dose of nostalgia in his heart as he looked around the room at many old familiar faces.

Very old faces…if he was entirely honest. He and Ed had decided, jointly, that they should invite as many of their closest friends of the _original_ team as possible to join them and, to his pleasure and surprise, many of them had been able to come, even if it meant traveling to Central.

Now his house was full of people who were special, and who he had missed far more than he realized. Feury and Falman were seated on one couch, hotly debating some topic that, from partially eavesdropping, Al thought had to do with East City versus West City sports of some sort. Meanwhile Sciezka and Marina—Feury's wife—were deep in conversation with Gracia, Elicia, and Winry talking about what all of the children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren were up to, and comparing notes on everything from life to their last vacations.

Perhaps the most interesting conversation was the one Al found himself in, as he half-listened to Ed, Riza, and Alex Armstrong debating the most effective way to take out the latest round of Brigg's tanks…just because they could.

There was plenty of food, because -of course- they had spent most of the day putting out a spread that would make anyone jealous. Al was glad to see everyone enjoying themselves, especially Alex. The hulking man was animatedly illustrating his strategy with his hands, with his usual enthusiasm. Enthusiasm Al knew came a little more difficult this year, since his wife Cynthia had passed away.

Outside the window, in the well-lit backyard, snow was falling. It had started that morning, and Al was impressed at how much was there now. There had to be almost six inches. Well, he was sure they could bed everyone down for the night if it came to that. Though Al didn't expect anyone to be too drunk to drive home at the end of the night.

It was Edward who came up with the first crazy idea of the night. "Hey, I've got an idea," Al's brother grinned during a lull in conversation. "We should do something memorable, something silly, and fun… something that will make our kids roll their eyes when they find out what we did."

"Like what?" Feury asked.

"Well there's all that beautiful material outside, just begging to be turned into artwork of questionable quality." Ed nodded out the picture windows towards Al's yard.

"You want to make snow sculptures?" Winry gave her husband an incredulous look.

"We'll make it a competition. Biggest, craziest, weirdest creation that doesn't fall down gets a prize."

"A glorious challenge," Alex grinned.

"What's the prize...besides getting cold and wet?" Falman asked over his glass of beer.

"Good point." Ed looked around. "Any ideas?"

"How about this?"

Everyone stared as Riza pulled a bottle out of her pocket and set it down in the middle of the coffee table. "Roy's last bottle of scotch."

Even Al found himself staring. It was a small bottle of… "Is that a '99?" he exclaimed in surprise. The bottle was eight-six years old.

Riza nodded. "Roy bought it, and two others, right after we got married. This is the only one left."

Falman stood up. "I'm in!"

"Me too." Feury bounced out of his seat. "Is this every man and woman for themselves, or are we doing teams."

"Teams seems fair." Ed glanced around, looking at numbers of people. "Couples?"

"We don't have an even number," Al observed.

"It's all right, I'll judge," Gracia offered with a smile. "Then Riza and Alex can be a team, and you're all set."

"Looks good," Winry nodded, "But I think we need a _no alchemy_ rule. It's got to be shaped by hand and stay up on its own."

"All right, no alchemy," Ed promised.

There was a short chaotic shuffle as everyone grabbed coats and gloves and hats and piled out into the back yard. Gracia came too, holding a camera. "No one will believe this happened otherwise," was her excuse.

Everyone was given a section of yard -so they wouldn't steal each other's snow- and got started. Al and Elicia started out with gathering the snow they needed, and before long had a pretty solid sculpture going of a futon with cats asleep on it. To make it more fun, Elicia started sketching quilt-patterns in the surface with her finger.  
Within the hour everyone was wet, cold, and laughing. Finally, it was time to judge. Al looked around, and realized that they were all pretty good!

Falman and Sciezka had built a towering sculpture of books, some closed in stacks, others open, with finger-edged spinal designs.

Riza and Alex had built a tank, complete with shells ready for loading, though Al expected it wasn't operational...not without alchemy.

Ed and Winry had built a snow-dog that looked like their big white fluffy dog Mal. The dog was sitting in what appeared to be a field of carefully crafted snow-flowers Winry had carved out of frozen ice-balls. Apparently they had made use of the hose drip. Clever.

Feury and Marina's however, was the clear winner. They had meticulously packed and carved a wave, cresting on a beach, complete with seafoam, a gull running on the sand, and seashells and starfish. The water 'almost' looked like it rippled, and they had also made use of the hose dripping to harden the curved wave in place and make it shine like the ocean itself.

"I think you missed your calling, Kain," Riza teased as Gracia handed Feury the bottle.

"Your artwork is magnificent!" Alex agreed.

"It was Marina's idea," Feury shrugged humbly, though he was grinning ear-to-ear. "Now let's go back inside and warm up!"

* * *

"And here we go, a nice mild cup of soup." Cal made a big show of setting the lap-tray containing said bowl of soup—little more than chicken broth and rice noodles—and two slices of lightly buttered toast down across Alyse's lap where she sat in the overstuffed chair, her feet up on the ottoman. "The finest food from the finest kitchen in Amestris."

Alyse smiled tiredly up at him. "Thank you. It smells just right."

Cal nodded. Not that it smelled like much of anything, but that was the point. It had been less than forty-eight hours since Alyse's last treatment, and she had been too nauseous to eat much of anything since. This was the first meal she had actually _requested._ He hadn't even made the soup; it was part of the large order of Xingese take-out that Gloria had picked up earlier. They were having an in-home just family party, just the four of them. That was more than alright with Cal. Lately, even when she wasn't feeling nauseous, Alyse was often too tired or ill to work, let alone go out and socialize. He just hoped that the treatments wouldn't last too much longer. Every week she seemed to get weaker, and they weren't making the progress the doctor's wanted. Still, he could not have been prouder of how Alyse was handling it all. He knew she was scared, he knew she felt terrible, yet most days she smiled and kept a positive face. Even now, huddled in her favorite chair, wrapped in a thick warm robe over her pajamas, a rose-and-green floral silk scarf wrapped around her hairless head, she looked brave and beautiful.

"Soup's on!" Charlie grinned, coming out of the kitchen with the rest of their Xingese meal, served up on Alyse's best serving dishes. Cal might have found it absurd, except that he couldn't think of anything more special than to spend the time they had—however much of it they had left—celebrating in style.

Gloria was right behind him with more plates on a tray, and a bottle of sparkling apple cider.

"Thanks," Cal took the bottle from her, and started pouring a little cider into the glasses already on the coffee table. There was also a pitcher of water for anyone who wanted it.

"This smells great," Charlie said as he grabbed a plate and started filling it with his favorite Xingese treats.

"It's a good thing I got enough to feed an army," Gloria commented with a mildly amused expression. "I'd forgotten how much you eat."

"Teenage boys are like that," Cal commented casually.

"Oh really?" Gloria asked. "What's your excuse?"

If he hadn't known his daughter was kidding, Cal would have been offended. "We never stop being teenagers," he replied with an exaggerated shrug.

Alyse chuckled. "Truer words were never spoken."

Cal took the seat on the couch closest to—and just to the left off—Alyse's armchair. Charlie and Gloria took the remaining seats on the couch as soon as Charlie turned on the television.

"The feature movie tonight is supposed to be _Life's Not All It's Cracked Up to Be._ "

"Oh, I love that movie," Alyse exclaimed, brightening.

Cal did not roll his eyes. The film, despite it's witty title, was an older movie; a heartwarming tale of taking what life throws at a man and coming out all right in the end. It focused on what mattered, and had a sweet romance that was viewed over the course of years as one of the subplots. Given the title, it was surprisingly mushy, but that was why Alyse loved it. Right now, Cal didn't think he could deny her anything. He might never be able to again.

A soft rubbing against his leg made Cal look down. It was Miss Whiskers, looking hopefully up at his plate.

Cal sighed and slipped a small bite of crab off his plate, so that it dropped to the floor. The cat caught it before it got that far, then wandered over to Alyse, and jumped up on the ottoman, where she curled up around Alyse's feet and began to purr heavily; a habit she had taken on ever since Alyse had started her treatments.

Alyse smiled, taking the effort to reach down and stroke the cat before she readjusted herself and went back to eating her soup. "Do you remember the first time we saw this movie?"

Cal grinned. "How could I forget? We were still dating." He had gone because she wanted to see it, and had valiantly stayed awake through the entire movie, despite having returned from a mission the day before, being dead-dog tired, and having not found it particularly riveting.

"So it's ancient."

Cal stuffed a couch cushion in his son's face. "Shut up and watch."

Gloria chuckled on the other side of her brother. "This is what I missed, the loving sounds of a family squabble."

Alyse smiled. "You know what they say, there's no place like home and family."

No, there really was nothing like it. Cal reached out, resting one hand on Alyse's arm, and giving it a squeeze. He would relish every moment, and make it last as long as possible.

* * *

For a first house party, Ian felt like his apartment-warming New Year's Eve bash was going well. The kitchen island was piled high with snacks. The radio was blaring the latest rock hits, while about half of the guests danced in the middle of his living room, and a handful of others were seated around his corner table playing a theater-and-film trivia game. He and Bonnie had agreed on a list of guests limited to friends from work, and approved guests. Thankfully none of their friends was dating or married to anyone Ian wouldn't have trusted to be discrete. Of course, they all understood the challenges of professional life.

"Great party, Ian!" Carmen beamed as she joined him by the food, reaching for a carrot stick and dipping it in ranch dressing. "Thanks for inviting us." _Us_ included her husband of two years, Dean Leonard. Dean was a set designer.

"It wouldn't be a party without you, Car," Ian grinned. "I'm glad you're filming in town. How's the project?"

"Great!" Carmen's smile widened. "I can't wait until it comes out in the spring. I never knew I'd have so much fun doing historical dramas."

"Dean doesn't mind your handsome romantic lead?"

"Not at all," Carmen grinned. "My handsome romantic lead dies a tragic death when a building collapses on him during combat. Guess who built the wall?"

Ian chuckled. That would certainly make up for it. "Do you have something already lined up for when you're done filming?"

Carmen shook her head and ate another carrot before responding. "Nope. I'm taking some time off, actually."

That caught him by surprise. "What for?" She had just said how much she was enjoying her work, and it was a leading role. Why take a break now?

Carmen's face lit up with excitement. "We're pregnant!"

Ian almost dropped his soda. "You're - that's great!" he grinned, reaching out for a hug that got an enthusiastic return. "Congratulations. I had no idea."

"Well it's not like we wanted it in the news yet," Carmen pointed out as the hug ended. "Though we'll probably have to let it leak soon, or all the gossip rags will be saying I'm getting fat."

Ian snorted. She wasn't even showing. Though now that she said something, he realized she was also wearing a looser-fitting style of clothes than she had chosen for herself most of the time he'd known her. "They do and I'll help Dean drop a few walls on _them._ "

"I knew I could count on you."

"Hey, what are friends for?"

As the hour got later, Ian watched as the cluster of friends separated back out towards couples, if they had come as such. It was almost a new year, and outside the two-story windows, which was white with falling snow, they would be able to see the Central New Year fireworks across the park. A view so good Ian hadn't even had to worry about putting the live broadcast on his television. Carmen found Dean, and Tina was there too with her boyfriend, Kief. Jessica Norris- Ian's old friend from Resembool who had come to Central for the acting work- and her fiancé Roscoe were cuddled up on his couch. Gary and his girlfriend Monica were chatting on the stairs with a couple of their other friends from wardrobe. Even Rafael from and his partner Freddie seemed to be enjoying themselves. Everyone had their drinks in hand, ready to ring in the new year right.

Ian found Bonnie finally by the window, looking out at the snow, which was starting to lighten up. "Having a good time?" he asked as he slid his left arm around her waist.

"I'm having a great time," she assured him, leaning her head against his shoulder. "You throw a pretty good party."

" _We_ throw a good party," Ian corrected her. "You did half the planning, and the food is amazing."

"It's nothing much," Bonnie disagreed. "It's just the stuff Mom always makes."

"And we've already agreed that your mother is not only a great cook, but a good teacher." Ian kissed her cheek. "If tonight is any indication, the student has surpassed her mother."

"I'll leave that call up to your _excellent_ sense of taste." Bonnie felt relaxed and at ease in his arm.

"Funny, just the other day you complained that I eat everything."

Bonnie's reply was cut off by the sudden explosion of colored lights outside the windows, and a few gasps of delight from the rest of the people in the room, which had suddenly gone quiet.

"Happy New Year." Ian leaned in and kissed his girlfriend.

 **January 1st, 1986**

Edward couldn't stop smiling as he crawled into bed beside Winry, and pulled her into his arms. "I wish we could do this more often."

"I do too," Winry agreed as she cuddled close under the blankets in the guest bed. "It's so rare that we can all be together these days."

Ed nodded. Who knew how many more times they would all be able to get together? Each time they met up, it seemed like someone else was missing. Maes, Jean, Roy, Nancy, Heymans… slowly they were losing their friends to the inexorable passing of time, whether it was illness, age, or heroic act. Even though she wasn't as old…Sara. This time it was Alex's wife. "I can't decide if it made me feel older or younger," he admitted.

"Well you were certainly acting younger," Winry teased. "Snow sculptures? Cheating at cards."

"I did not cheat!" Ed objected. He hadn't, for once. "I just happened to get really good hands all night."

"Right, Ed."

"No, really!" Then he realized she was grinning at him in the dim light coming from the outside window, the soft pink haze of city-lights on snow clouds. "You tease."

"It was a good idea." Winry kissed him softly. "The older we get, the more important it is to enjoy what keeps us young."

Ed raised his eyebrows suggestively. "Well, you know what makes me feel young…"

"It's almost two in the morning."

"Yeah, and I can't think of a better way to start off what will be our eighty-seventh year."

"Only eighty-seven?" Winry chuckled.

Ed pulled her closer, and kissed her warmly. "Yes, _only_ , and I intend to make love to my wife for as long as I'm able." It didn't matter how old they were. If they were over one-hundred he would still find her irresistible.

Winry returned the embrace. "Well, when you put it that way, how can I refuse?"

* * *

"Well, that was a huge success," Bonnie commented as she stuffed the last of the leftover napkins and crumb-covered paper towels into Ian's trash can.

Ian nodded as he closed the door on the last container of leftovers he had put into the refrigerator. "A perfect way to say goodbye to one year, and hello to the future," he agreed, the last word breaking as his jaw cracked in a huge yawn. It was definitely bed time. "Thanks again." He crossed the kitchen and came around the island counter, gathering her into his arms for a hug, and one more kiss. "It means a lot to me to be able to tell our friends how special you are to me… that you want to be with me."

Bonnie smiled, resting her head against his chest, relaxing against him. "Thank you for being so patient with me."

"I love you," Ian replied gently. "If you'd asked, I'd have waited years. I'm glad you _didn't_ mind you, but-"

"Shhh. I love you, too." Bonnie turned her head and kissed him again.

Ian willingly stopped talking, preferring to kiss his girlfriend in the silence of his empty apartment, in the soft glow of the winter light coming through the two-story windows, and the little kitchen light over the sink. Awash in warmth, he wished the night didn't have to end.

Eventually the kiss broke. "I guess I should pull out the spare blankets," Bonnie said. They had already agreed beforehand that she shouldn't try to drive home after the party.

"Take the bed," Ian offered.

"Ian, it's fine. The couch is perfectly comfortable."

"The bed's better." He loosened his hold on her, though he didn't let go completely. "The new mattress is amazing."

"It's your bed."

It was a crazy idea… "So take half," he suggested before he lost his nerve.

"Ian! I-"

"Before you say no," he cut her off, "It's more than big enough for two people, and all I'm _suggesting_ … is that it might be nice to wake up in the morning after a very restful night of cuddling. Just, you know, snuggling up like we do on the couch…" But on his bed, where they could lie comfortably and he wouldn't get a crick in his neck.

She hadn't hit him yet. That was a good sign.

"I like cuddling." Bonnie looked thoughtful for several seconds. "All right. We'll share the bed, but you had _better_ not sleep naked."

Ian chuckled. "Shorts and a shirt, I promise."

"Good." Whether the blush on her face was Bonnie's skin, or the rosy night-glow, Ian couldn't tell. "Then we should get to bed. It's late."

Ian grinned as he slipped one arm around her shoulders and escorted her towards his bedroom. It might not seem like much to some, but inside he was dancing. "Actually, I think technically it's now _early_."


	24. Chapter 24

**January 8** **th** **, 1986**

There had been days in his life when Cal had felt lousy dragging in to work on a Monday morning, but they had always been for a good reason: coming in after a long hard mission, or a wild night of sex and drinking.

It just wasn't fair to feel half-dead because he'd had a lousy night's sleep. Not that he had been sleeping well lately to begin with, but if Alyse had a bad night, Cal had a bad night, and last night had been the worst yet as far as his wife not feeling well. She had already been feeling poorly at bedtime, going to bed early in the hopes of staving off worse nausea. Then she had coughed half the night.

Cal got up with the alarm and took a shower, but when he came out of the bedroom, one look at Alyse made him reconsider his schedule. "'Lyse, I can't leave you like this."

She was sitting up on the edge of the bed to get up, but her face was flushed, and she was coughing again. "I'll be okay, Cal."

"Not if you're getting sick on top of everything else." They had been warned she would be more likely to catch ill during her treatments, which were taking a toll on her immune system.

Cal crossed the room in nothing but his bath towel and placed his lips to his wife's forehead, which was alarmingly warm. "You've got a fever."

"Calvin-"

"Don't _Calvin_ me." He straightened up. "I'm taking you to see a doctor."

In less than twenty minutes Cal was dressed, and had Charlie out the door to school, and Alyse dressed and in the car with him on the way to the hospital, with a call already in to Doctor Martins to expect them.

Thankfully the doctor did not have a conflicting appointment, or Cal might have lost it in the waiting room. Just in the time it had taken to drive over, Alyse looked worse. He wished she would stop insisting it was probably just a minor infection.

That ended with Dr. Martins' concerned expression as she did a thorough examination. "You have pneumonia," she said simply. "We're admitting you for treatment."

"Pneumonia!" Cal exclaimed.

"Admitting me?" Alyse gasped then fell into a coughing fit.

"Easy," Cal reached out, holding Alyse steady. He was too worried to argue. He agreed with the doctor. There was no choice. She needed treatment, and constant care. "It'll be all right. You've got to get better," he said as Dr. Martins left the examination room to go have a room prepared.

"I'm afraid," Alyse replied as she held on to him. "I don't want to be alone here."

"You won't be," Cal promised. "I'll be right here with you, and I'll call your parents. We won't let you be alone." _You'll leave the hospital again. You'll come home with me. Oh god… you've got to get well again._

If Alyse could sense his fear, she didn't show it. She relaxed just slightly in his arms. "Thank you."

By the time Alyse was settled into her own private room and being given her first treatments, Cal had managed to call Alphonse and Elicia, and they had arrived at the hospital.  
Elicia went straight into her daughter's room, but Al paused outside. "How are _you_ doing?" he asked Cal.

"I've been worse."

His father-in-law frowned. "Is there something I should know?"

"Nothing we don't already know." It could affect everything. If she was too weak or sick, it would delay Alyse's next treatments. They already were less effective than the doctors had hoped. In what was already a constant, uphill battle, pneumonia now was a disaster. Cal wasn't sure what else to say. His own well-being rested entirely on his wife's recovery. He would hold it together for her sake, but he hated feeling so helpless.

"Hang in there," Al said in that encouraging way of his. "We're here for all of you. You know that."

Cal nodded. "Thanks." He had a feeling he was going to need it.

* * *

Charlie hadn't planned to spend dinner in the hospital, but when his father had picked him up as he got off the bus, he had known something was wrong. Finding out his mother was in the hospital had only made a difficult day-he'd had three tests in his least favorite subjects-even worse. Suddenly the tests didn't matter.

He and his father ate dinner with Mom in the hospital, and when she asked him about his day, Charlie didn't mention the tests, except to say he thought he had done well on them. Instead he talked about the particularly good dessert at lunch, the interesting historical tidbits they had covered in history class, and anything that might make the day sound better than the one his mother was having.

When they got home, aside from the insistently meowing cat, the house seemed too quiet. Charlie didn't like it. It felt too much like a preview of things to come… if his mother never came home again. "I think I'm going to do my homework," he said after he finished helping his father with the little cleaning the kitchen actually needed.

"Good idea," Cal replied. "I've got some work to catch up on."

"Dad… is Mom going to die?"

"Not from pneumonia," his father replied, but there was hesitation in his voice, and Charlie knew that meant he wouldn't make any further promises about anything he couldn't control.

Something neither of them could control.

Charlie went up to his room, closed the door, and lay down on his bed. He did pull out his homework, like he'd said, but he found it almost impossible to concentrate. The numbers on the page blended together, and finally he just gave up.

Tomorrow he'd see if Shelby was available for another study date.

 **January 10** **th** **, 1986**

Will was grateful that it was early enough in the semester his students' hadn't had a paper due yet, because there was no way he would have been able to focus on grading. Instead, he had taken the afternoon shift sitting with Alyse at the hospital. His sister had never liked the places to begin with, and he wasn't about to let her be alone when she didn't have to be. While the hospital had very strict overnight rules about guests who weren't patients, that didn't keep the whole family from taking turns sitting with Alyse every spare moment they could. Will had arrived as his mother was leaving, and while half of his visit had involved watching Alyse sleep, they had also had time to talk before he had to leave for dinner, and Cal and Charlie had arrived.

"You're quiet this evening," Ren commented gently over dinner. "How's Alyse?"

Will stopped stirring his soup with his spoon. "Miserable, scared. The pneumonia hasn't gotten worse, but she's not improving quickly either." Not that he had expected it, given her condition, but he hated watching his little sister suffer. "Isn't there _something_ else we can do for her?" Being an alchemist and being helpless were too things he always found difficult to reconcile.

Ren's expression was sympathetic, and regretful. "I'm sorry, Will. You know that Xinai is the best alkahestrist in Amestris for dealing with cancer cases. There is nothing I can do that would be better than the treatments he's giving Alyse, and it's not safe to continue the chemical treatments until she's over the pneumonia."

"I know. That doesn't make it easier." Will took a bite of his dinner, but he barely tasted it. "Was there any good news today?" It was time to stop feeling sorry for Alyse, and for himself. He had to stay positive, if only to help keep her spirits up.

"Michio called," Ren smiled. "He and Quin are all settled in their new apartment off campus." Quin Lun was Michio's college friend and roommate. "Classes just started, and he said their internships at the hospital start next week."

"Glad to hear it." Will kept eating. "How's the new girlfriend?"

Ren smiled. "He's still seeing Minsa, though since she's also a medical student, they don't expect to have much free time once internships start."

"At least they know what they're getting into." Will knew that Michio's last two girlfriends had called it quits because, as a medical student, especially with the alkahestry focus, he had less and less time for anything outside of his studies. "Any word for Kamika?" His youngest daughter was also at the University in the Imperial City, but since their youngest daughter had decided to focus on psychology –and seemed to be highly enjoying her courses in philosophy and Xingese history- she wasn't in the same program as her brother. She wasn't sure what she wanted to do with her studies yet, but Will was okay with letting her take the time to discover which area she loved most. After all, Michio had gone expecting to focus on philosophy and history and had ended up doing that, but as minors, getting very wrapped up in medical studies.

"Not since she called last week," Ren shook her head. "Though she said she would call back sometime soon to let us know when Meifen sets a date for her wedding."

"Of course." That made Will smile. His niece had finally accepted the proposal of her long-time love interest, and now that things were settling down again politically, it was a match few would have any objection to; not that anyone dared voice that objection to his nephew, the Emperor, regarding his sister's choice of spouse. Ren's brother, Mao, had called himself to tell them all about it when the proposal had finally happened, and he and Jiu were very pleased with the turn of events. "I hope it's at a time when we can both get off work."

"That would be nice."

"I don't suppose you heard anything from our wandering eldest?" It seemed like every time Minxia called, she and Thrakos were somewhere else, though these days most of those sites were at least somewhere in Creta, or down near the border of Creta and Aerugo, where there were hundreds of historical sites under excavation and study.

"Not since they got back from their trip out Talas Island to look at the caves under that old volcano." The caves in question had been reported to be full of statues and ancient burial remains, and his daughter and her husband had been up to their eyeballs in exciting discoveries for weeks. "They were going to be in Pylos for at least a little while. You could probably call and catch her at their apartment."

Now there was an idea. It was earlier in Creta, and a conversation with Minxia was almost always a happy thing these days. "I think I'll do that after dinner."

 **January 12** **th** **, 1986**

"Lisa, who's our next appointment?" Ethan asked the newest in a line of young alkahestry-trained physicians who had done internships with their offices over the years as part of their residency requirements. Lunch had been relaxing and enjoyable, since he had managed to catch Lia between teaching and office hours and make an impromptu lunch-date out of it.

"General Fischer," Lisa replied from the front desk. "He's waiting for you."

Cal? Ethan hadn't been expecting him, so it must have been a last minute appointment. "Thank you, Lisa." He headed straight back towards the examination room, dropping his jacket in his office as he went. "To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?"

Cal was standing by the window. He turned, and fixed eyes on him with a gaze that spoke more than a whole conversation. Not that Ethan had expected a happy response. He was as worried as anyone in the family about Alyse. The two cousins had always been very close, and he had been over to visit her twice in the past four days, and over to their house at least once a week since the diagnosis.

Ethan knew how rough things were going. Cal's exhaustion and stress were no surprise.

"I just need a refill." Cal tossed something at Ethan, who caught it easily in midair. It was an empty pill bottle; the one for anxiety medication that Ethan had prescribed a couple of years before. Before Alyse's cancer, he had stopped needed them.

"Just the one?" Ethan asked. He would be surprised if Cal's blood pressure wasn't through the roof these days.

"Both, if I need it." Cal shrugged. "I couldn't find the bottle for that one. Been too long."

Ethan picked up a blood pressure cuff. "With your history, yes, I'm checking. Sit down."

Cal did as instructed without griping. A bad sign in and of itself.

"How are you sleeping?" Ethan asked as he waited for numbers.

"How do you think?" Cal griped, then immediately looked apologetic. "Sorry. Not sleeping much."

"I wouldn't be either," Ethan replied, not at all upset. In fact, he hadn't been sleeping well the past couple of days himself, or even as well as usual in recent weeks. Not with Alyse to worry about, which had actually overtaken _my daughter is pregnant with twins_ as the most stressful and immediate concern in Ethan's life. Lily was fine. Alyse was not.

"Eating?"

"Yes."

"Properly?"

"If hospital coffee counts as a food group."

Ethan sighed, but did not start into a lecture he knew wouldn't change anything. Cal knew what he would have said without him repeating himself. Ethan looked down at the results. "Well I'm refilling both prescriptions. If you need something to help you sleep, call me, and for goodness sake try to drink something that won't wake a dead cow every once in a while."

"If you're suggesting decaf, you can forget it." Cal leaned back as Ethan removed the cuff. "I just need to hold it together until it's o—until Alyse gets through this."

Ethan caught the hesitation in his voice. He knew Dr. Xinai fairly well. Even while it was growing, the alkahestry trained physicians in Central were a small community among doctors. They had discussed at length—Ren included—Alyse's changes and her treatment options. Right now, Xinai was still giving her alchemical treatments, though they were currently focused at healing pneumonia so they could return to the progress of curing cancer. It wasn't spreading, but it also wasn't gone, and it wasn't responding as well as they had hoped or expected. There weren't a lot of options left. Ethan didn't want to think about what would happen if Alyse didn't survive. The man in front of him was very close to falling apart. The only thing holding him back from it was Alyse, and his need to be there for her. "If you need anything, you know Lia and I are here. You know, I think she's making stew tonight."

"Thanks." Cal nodded. "Maybe another time."

"Cal-"

"Charlie and I are eating over at Tore's tonight," Cal cut him off, holding up his hands in a placating gesture.

Ethan smiled. "Well, then I'll just tell Lia to expect you tomorrow night instead."

"Doctor's orders?" Cal asked wryly.

"You bet."

* * *

Ian hummed to himself as he lay out dinner for date night after work. In the name of not spending everything in their wallets, he and Bonnie often took turns cooking, though more often than not lately they ended up at his place, mostly because it was larger, had a better kitchen, and wasn't crammed full of sewing supplies.

Tonight was another one of his attempts at gourmet-on-a-budget that didn't require hours to cook, and he thought it had turned out pretty well. He had started with a safe standard –pasta with his mother's fabulous meat-and-tomato sauce- and then tossed a salad with diced sweet peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, and chives in a light homemade vinaigrette dressing. Fresh warm rolls from the bakery down the street were staying warm in the oven.

He was just pulling them out to tuck them in the covered basket he had for bread when the door opened-he'd given Bonnie a key the first week he moved in-and he heard her footsteps as she came down the little hallway.

"Your meal awaits," he turned, grinning, to find Bonnie standing there, looking slightly stunned, and holding an envelope. "Something up?" he asked, curious.  
Bonnie held out the envelope toward him. "I'm afraid to open it."

"What is it?" Was it from her family? From her expression, the letter could have been a pit viper.

Ian reached out and took the letter, looking down at the return address, his heart skipped a beat. "Bonnie, this is from the AFA!" The Amestris Film Association was the group that ran the Amestris Film Awards, which were coming up soon. Nomination letters had gone out the week before; not that Ian had received anything, but a couple of his favorite current projects weren't out in theatres yet, so he hadn't been too disappointed. "This could be big."

"But why would _I_ be getting one?" she asked incredulously.

"Oh, maybe because you're a talented designer and artist and they have technical awards?" Ian suggested, ripping the end carefully off the envelope. "You'll never know if you don't open it." He pulled the letter out, flipped it open, and read. Two lines in, he felt his heart quicken with excitement and pride. "Bonnie, you've been nominated!"

"Me? Just me?" She looked stunned.

A grin spread across Ian's face. "Yes, for your original costume designs for _King of Creta._ " The historical drama-in which he had not been cast- had required a huge selection of ancient Cretan costumes, and Bonnie had been the primary designer for all of the major character concepts. Ian knew, because he had listened to her talk about them for months leading up to, and during, the production.

Bonnie snatched the letter out of Ian's hand and read it herself…at least three times from what he could tell by watching her. "But… I…"

"You, my love, are a talented woman." Ian kissed her cheek. "Accept it, because you're going to have to get all dolled up and be there to accept that award."

"I've only been nominated," Bonnie pointed out. "That doesn't mean I'm going to win."

"Of course you're going to win." Ian grinned. This was almost better than if he had been nominated himself.

"What will I _wear?_ "

"Asks the professional clothing designer. You've got racks and racks of your own designs out there."

"But none of those were made _for_ me." Bonnie looked more than a little uncomfortable.

Ian toned it down a little, and smiled in understanding. "Then let me choose. I promise not to embarrass you."

"You'd better not." Bonnie looked down at the letter again. "You'll be with me, right?"

"Hey, how often do I get to be arm-decor for an AWA nominee?" Ian teased gently. "I'll be right with you the whole time. You don't want reporters to bother you, I'll divert them. You won't have to do anything that makes you uncomfortable."

"Aside from possibly standing up in a fancy dress and giving a speech in front of people."

"Don't think about that." Ian started spooning pasta out onto plates. "Just think about how nice those checks from Silverman's will look when your popularity rises through the roof and _everyone_ wants fashions from an award winning designer."

"There is that," Bonnie admitted. "I _have_ been eyeing a new sewing machine…"

"See, now you're thinking like a winner." Ian grinned. "Tonight, we celebrate."

"And just what did you have in mind?" Bonnie asked, with a coy smile.

"Well, after dinner, I'll take you out for dessert," Ian suggested. He hadn't tried to make dessert. Now he was glad he hadn't, "And then whatever else you'd like to do this evening. Take in a show, go dancing… go window-gazing at sewing machines. It's your evening."

"I like that last idea," Bonnie teased as she sat down. "What will we do if I actually win?"

"Something fabulous," Ian assured her, glad he'd have at least a couple of weeks to figure out what it could be!

 **January 14** **th** **, 1986**

There were some days being a parent was great, and others when it was harder. Cal knew that today was going to be one of those harder days. After he and Charlie spent a couple of hours at the hospital with Alyse, they left. The day was warm for January, and the New Year's snow had melted, so they had walked. On the way home, Cal diverted from their usual path, stopping by a nearby coffee house to order a drink to go. "You want anything?"

"Sure." Charlie ordered a chocolate coffee, and after their drinks were made, they continued walking, cutting across a wide park, mostly empty given the wintery Sunday afternoon.

As they walked, side by side, Cal brought up the subject he had been partially dreading. "So, how long have you been having sex with Shelby?"

Charlie almost tripped over his feet. "How did you know?" he blurted out.

"I don't throw condoms away in your bathroom."

Charlie's face went pale. "Dad I… shit, please don't tell mom."

Cal snorted. "You think _Mom_ is your biggest worry?"

Charlie shrugged, looking sideways at him as they walked. "Are _you_ going to ground me until I move out?"

Cal sighed, and shook his head. "No, but I'm very disappointed. I really thought you _both_ had better sense. Do her parents know?"

Charlie shook his head vehemently. "No. I'm pretty sure you'd have heard about it, loudly, from her old man if they did. I'm not dumb. We used protection."

"Well, at least you were prepared." Cal took a drink of his coffee. "Don't do it again, and I won't mention it to your mother. She doesn't need the stress right now." If Alyse knew, she'd probably blow a vein somewhere. Somewhere in his mind, much as he was upset, Cal had always been prepared for this particular eventuality. He was just grateful his son had listened to the part of the lecture about not having unprotected sex. "You haven't slept with anyone _else_ have you?"

"Hell no!" Charlie actually looked insulted. "I'd never cheat on Shelby. I love her." He grew quiet. "You're not going to forbid me to see her are you?"

Cal shook his head. "It's not like it would actually stop you, would it?"

"Well… no." Charlie was clearly trying to read Cal's thoughts based on his expression, and failing. "You said you wouldn't tell Mom. What about Shelby's parents?"

Maybe this was or wasn't typical 'good parenting,' but Cal was going to handle this his way. Anything to handle this without adding to Alyse's stress. Her health was just too delicate. " _You're_ going to tell her parents," he told his son. "If you and Shelby don't feel you did something wrong, don't go around hiding. You can bet it will be worse if they figure it out on their own. But you're going to have to live with the consequences."

Charlie's expression fell. "I'm dead."

"You'll live," Cal assured his son, "Unless she gets pregnant. _Then_ you're dead. Hell, you make me a grandpa before you get out of high school and I might just kill you myself." _It might be hypocritical, but I'll do it._ "You both have plans after high school. Don't complicate things."

Charlie's face had gone very still. "Is this one of those "experience talking" things?"

Well, no time like the present for that talk. "Yes," Cal replied. "And, if the girl hadn't miscarried, and decided she was more interested in someone else her daddy approved of more than me, I'd either still be living in the back end of nowhere in Koldspur, or you'd have a half-brother or sister who'd be forty-one this year."

The boy's mouth dropped open. "Damn, Dad."

"Watch your mouth." Cal leaned against the park fence. "I was young, in love, and stupid. You… as far as I can tell at least have better taste in girls than I did." Shelby wasn't anything like Valeria that Cal had heard or seen. "If you really love her, don't screw this up." Not that he had a choice necessarily. If Shelby's parents forbid Charlie to see her, they wouldn't be able to do much about it before they were eighteen without making a real mess of things, and they still had two-and-a-half years until they graduated high school.

"I'm trying not to." Charlie drank out of his own cup. "I don't suppose you have any advice?"

"Well, my first advice would have been _don't have sex with the girl before you're both eighteen_ but it's a bit too late for that." _Now_ his son looked contrite. _Good._ "At this point all you can do is tell her parents before _they_ figure it out. If you don't, my conscience may get the better of me." His conscience and the need to preemptively keep this from blowing up in all their faces.

"No! I'll handle it." Charlie promised vehemently. "I don't know what we'll do if they don't want her to see me anymore."

"Not see each other outside of school I'd imagine." Cal certainly didn't see any reason for the two to stop dating, but he was far too aware of just how strongly her parents might feel on the subject…as well as his own admittedly hypocritical relief that he hadn't had to deal with any men sleeping with Gloria.

"I can't do that," Charlie shook his head. "I _need_ her, Dad. I can't… _not_ be with her. She means everything to me." His face flushed. "I mean… almost. You and Mom mean a lot to me too… and Gloria."

"Glad you haven't forgotten your sister," Cal quipped, but he understood. Meant to be or not, there was no doubt of his son's feelings for Shelby. "If you can't live without her, then you'll just have to do your best not to lose her."


	25. Chapter 25

**January 19** **th** **, 1986**

Charlie had a feeling deep down that the world as he knew it was about to end. Still, it was the right thing to do, he supposed, to tell Shelby's parents about the status of their relationship. He refused to call it a mistake, or to apologize for what they had done. It had been a mutual choice. He loved her. She loved him. They weren't being careless, or stupid. But… they were her parents, and he and Shelby weren't eighteen.

Two-and-a-half years had never looked so long as it did as they sat in Shelby's living room on the couch, while her parents sat across from them; Shelby's father sitting in a high-backed chair. His wife was standing beside the chair. They looked slightly wary.

Charlie supposed it must have sounded odd to them-maybe alarming-when he and Shelby both wanted to talk to them at the same time.

"You wanted to talk to us?" Shelby's mother asked, in her soft pleasant voice.

Shelby glanced at Charlie, then turned to her mother and nodded. "We… thought you should know that we've been thinking about our relationship."

"Oh?" Her mother didn't look too surprised. "Have you decided something important?" Maybe she thought they were announcing that they were exclusive, or that he'd given her a promise ring, or some other general high school traditional declaration of romance.

Clearly they weren't expecting a marriage proposal. Which was good, because Charlie had already discounted that as a way out of this mess. No way either sets of parents would have approved that at age sixteen.

After a lot of discussion, Charlie and Shelby had decided this would go over best if Shelby brought up most of the sensitive points on her own so it didn't look like Charlie had talked her into it and was trying to protect her.

Shelby nodded and looked at her mother, notably not looking at her father. "We've gotten a lot closer lately."

"How much closer?" This came with a sharp, warning note from Mr. Cruse. Charlie felt his chances of survival sinking sharply. Maybe her mother hadn't caught on… but her father certainly seemed to. Charlie made himself meet the man's hard gaze evenly.

"We've been… intimate." Shelby's voice got softer. Clearly she hadn't missed the warning either.

Her mother gasped.

Her father's scowl deepened. "Are you pregnant?"

"Of course not!" Shelby's face was bright red, but she looked righteously offended more than embarrassed. Charlie felt a little thrill of pride. "Do you really think we'd be that reckless?"

"Well let's look at the situation." Her father gestured at the four of them. "I've never heard of kids admitting their sins to their parents unless they get caught or they're in trouble. So what am I supposed to think?"

Charlie's temper flared. He bit his tongue.

Shelby continued to glare at her father. "That maybe I know what I'm doing?"

"Clearly not. Was this your idea?" he was staring at Charlie now, and he finally understood what it felt like to look death in the face.

He wasn't going to say _actually your daughter invited me up to her room to make-out._ "It was a mutual decision."

"If you expect me to believe that—"

"It's the truth!" Shelby cut in. "Don't go blaming Charlie. _I'm_ the one who started it."

 _Oh, Shels… no._ He didn't want her to take the rap for this. Shelby's mother and father were both glaring at the two of them in disbelief.

What could he say that wouldn't make this situation worse? "It's true," he confirmed, trying not to sound like he was shoveling the blame elsewhere. "We're in _love._ What's wrong with that? We used protection." It wasn't as if they hadn't thought it through.

There was a long, deafening silence. Then Mr. Cruse spoke.

"Go home, Charles."

Charlie wanted to argue, but a glance from Shelby and his instincts told him that disobeying a statement to leave would get them in more trouble. What could he do, anyway? He'd been given an order. Instead, he gave Shelby's hand a squeeze. Letting it go was the hardest thing he had ever done. Feeling the eyes stabbing his back as he walked out, Charlie left.

He made the walk home in record time, where he paced the floor in the living room for over an hour. What was going on? Were Shelby's parents chewing her out? Was she in trouble? Was he ever going to be allowed near her again? What if they reported to the school that they wouldn't be allowed in the same classes and changed Shelby's schedule? What if they decided to make her do home school, or change districts? There were all sorts of terrible things he could imagine coming to pass. They'd be honest, they'd come clean…and the look on her parent's faces hadn't left him with any hope that they would be as understanding as his father had been.

He tried thinking positive. It was possible they were putting on a tough front to make their displeasure clear. Maybe, when they calmed down and talked it over with just Shelby, they would realize that he and Shelby weren't acting irresponsibly.

The phone rang.

Charlie ripped it off the receiver before the first ring was finished. "Hello?"

"It's me." Shelby's voice was soft, and a little hoarse, as if she'd been crying.

"Shels…babe…are you okay? What did they say?"

There was a long, heartbreaking silence. "I'm not allowed to see you again. You can't come over, and I'm not allowed over there… not even if our parents are home."

"What about the phone? School?" Charlie felt his world shattering around him.

"They said you're a _corrupting influence_ , and after this I can't call you again." She sniffed, and he realized she was still crying. "I'm grounded until _April_. No after school club meetings, no dances…"

"Shelby, I'm sorry." He was so, _so_ sorry. Hell, sorry didn't even cover it.

"I can't sit with you in class, or at lunch." Her voice was quavering. "I've never heard him so mad. Charlie he's… he's never yelled at me in my whole life."

He should be there, hugging her, comforting her… "It's not fair," he told her. "Is this…over? God,I don't want this to be the end, Shels. I love you!"

"I don't want it this way either," she assured him. "I love you, Charlie… I just don't know what we can do!" She sobbed, and he heard her blow her nose. "Daddy said he's going to tell the administration, and if we're seen together he'll make me change schools completely."

It was his worst fears recognized. "We'll find a way," he assured her. "I'll think of something, babe. I promise." He just wished he had some idea what. Mr. Cruse _worked_ at the school.

"Be careful, Charlie," Shelby warned. "Please. I… I don't want you getting in trouble because of me. Maybe…maybe we should just do what we're told for now."

 _What?_ "Shels… what are you saying?"

"I'm sorry, Charlie. We can't be together right now."

* * *

Cal knew it had gone badly when he arrived home from the hospital to find his son face-down on the couch, his head buried in a pillow. The living room looked like a disaster…well, for a room normally kept spotless. A couch pillow had exploded all over the room, feathers scattered everywhere, and a bottle of soda was overturned on the coffee table, and had spilled, running off onto the floor and mingling with the feathers.

Miss Whiskers sat curled up on top of Charlie's back, purring manically.

It didn't take much for Cal to recognize heartbreak. He sat down on the edge of the couch, with what little space Charlie had left, and laid a hand on his son's shoulder next to the cat. "Tell me about it," he said softly.

"It's over…" Charlie's raw voice croaked out of the pillow. "If I even talk to her, Mr. Cruse will pull her out of our school and I'll never see her again…not even across the room." His muscles tightened, and his fist pounded against an already-worn spot on the couch. "It's not fair!" he rolled over enough that Cal could see a face, dry-stained with tears.

"Damn it, Dad. How do you _deal_ with this kind of thing?" Charlie's heartbroken expression killed him. Miss Whiskers got up and jumped off the couch.

Cal felt something in him breaking too, as he realized he didn't have any really good advice. _I got drunk, kid. A lot…and then I ran away from it all._ "Badly," he replied honestly.

"I'm sorry, Charlie. There's no cure for heartbreak except time."

"I'm not giving up," Charlie shook his head. "I can't…I… _damn it all to hell!_ She's still in love with me… it can't end like this. It can't…"

"Maybe it won't. In a couple of years, you'll both be eighteen. Then it won't matter what her parents want." It was hollow consolation now, Cal knew, but it might be the only hope they had, at least until Shelby's parents had time to cool off.

"I can't live that long without her."

 _Ah, young hormones._ Cal almost offered the kid a beer. The whole thing made _him_ want a drink. All he could do was offer some hard-earned perspective. "Remember what I said about not doing anything stupid?" Cal asked. "This would be a good time to start, if you don't. Believe me, I know how much it hurts, but if you want any chance of fixing things with Shelby, you're going to have to pull it together and not do anything rash that will make her parents hate you. Right now, they might just be upset about what happened. They might cool off. Shelby won't thank you if you make them madder…or do anything that will. I know patience is not your best suit, but you've got to hold it together, Charlie. We don't get anywhere in the world if we lie down and roll over, or run off half-cocked, when what we need to do is be patient and come up with a new plan of attack."

It wasn't comforting. It wasn't reassuring, but it did seem to have made a point.

Charlie's back muscles relaxed. "Growing up sucks."

"Now on that, I couldn't agree more."

 **January 20** **th** **, 1986**

"You know, I don't know why everyone says wedding planning is complicated," Raina said, smiling across the dining table covered with papers and lists at Urey. "This is a lot simpler than trying to plan my school year."

Urey chuckled. "I don't suppose that has anything to do with the fact that your criteria for a wedding are _quaint, country,_ and _we say vows._ "

Raina chuckled. "I _did_ also insist that you wear a suit, I get a nice dress, and our parents be there."

"There is that." Urey looked at the chaos spread in front of him, aware that while it looked like a mess, Raina had it all figured out. "I'm glad your parents were happy about it."

He and Yurian had gone with Raina when she left Central to go to South City so that they could tell her parents about the engagement in person.

"My parents think you're the best thing that ever happened to me. Lucky for you, I agree with them." Raina winked at him, then went back to marking things off the checklist in front of her. "Okay, we have a guest list. The invitations are printed, stuffed in envelopes, labeled, and mailed. Your grandparents have said we can have the wedding in their back garden. We've been to the bakery and chosen a cake."

"That was a great day," Urey grinned. Cake sampling was a thoroughly delightful way to spend two hours.

"You have a suit."

"That was not a great day."

Raina looked up from her list again and smiled at him coyly. "Then you shouldn't have decided to go shopping for a suit the day after cake tasting."

"That was probably the wrong order, yes," Urey nodded.

"At least you're irresistible in a suit."

"If I'd known that, I'd have worn a suit to see you sooner," he responded to her teasing in good nature as he looked at his half of _the list._ "You've got a dress, that I haven't seen yet," he added, knowing it wouldn't do any good. That surprise would wait until the big day. "We've got rings ordered at the jeweler. You chose flowers at the florist here in town…. And Granny and Mom insisted on making hors d'oeuvres."

"To which I have no objections whatsoever," Raina grinned. "All of their food is amazing."

It seemed like everything was coming together very smoothly, and Urey was grateful. "I'll take Yurian in for his suit fitting the week before," he promised her. His son would be standing with them, but he grew so fast, Urey wanted to make sure he didn't outgrow his pant-legs before then.

"Great! Mom was _so_ excited that he'll be in the wedding."

Urey smiled. As far as Raina's parents were concerned, the fact that their new son-in-law came with an adorable already play-age grandson was a bonus, not a detractor. Her mother would probably spoil Yurian rotten if they weren't careful. "Your Dad is cleared for travel again?"

Raina nodded. "His doctor said he'll be fine, as long as he sticks to his dietary restrictions, which Mom says he hates, but he'll be there. He said he wouldn't miss giving me away for the world." There was fondness in her tone and expression. Urey knew Raina worried a lot lately about her father's health. After he'd collapsed on their visit to Resembool in October, her father's physicians had gotten very strict about his tendency to ignore everything they said. Her mother had put her foot down too.

"I'm glad." He meant it too. "I'm also glad they'll be staying with Granny and Grandpa this time around." As much as he liked her parents, he didn't want to spend their first night married with her parents in the next room. Not that they had _ever_ told her parents that they were already sleeping together.

Raina reached for her glass of tea. "That would be awkward. Since we're getting married on Monday afternoon, we can move your things in on Saturday."

The wedding date had been reasonably planned for during the schools' spring break, which meant that Raina didn't have work, Yurian didn't have school, and more family members could make it for the ceremony. "I'll be packed and ready," Urey promised. It wasn't as if he had much to move anyway. Since he and Cayla had lived with his parents, he didn't have furniture, or dishes, or anything other than his own clothing, personal items he had kept from growing up, and his books. Yurian's room at his parents' had far more things in it than Urey owned: his bed, and matching dresser, and a little table and chair for crafts. He had plenty of clothing, children's books, and toys, some of which dated back to when Urey and his brothers had lived there; items they had outgrown but his parents had held onto. Urey was glad that Raina's little house had enough room for him and Yurian to move in. There was an entire room upstairs that was going to be Yurian's. All that Raina had kept in it was a few boxes that had never gotten unpacked. Urey had already helped her move them. The one dresser from his own old room and a bookcase would hold everything he needed to bring with him. "So, what else really needs doing?" They had spoken with the nearest local minister as soon as they got home.

Raina set her pen and her paper down and stretched, stifling a yawn. "Well, at some point we need to finish writing our vows, but right now, there's nothing critical but waiting for the rest of our guests to respond to their invitations. So, would you rather start on making dinner, or take advantage of the fact that Yurian is at Reichart and Deanna's this evening?"

"Food or you… is that even a choice?" Urey teased as he pushed back his chair and stood up. He held out a hand.

Raina smiled and took his hand. "That's up to you."

"Then you should know by now, that I love you more than food." He pulled her closer.

"Wow, then I know you really love me, because I know how much you love my cooking."

"Yep… and you're _really_ cooking." The play on words was awful, but Urey didn't care.

Raina groaned, even though she was laughing. "Bedroom….now."

"Yes ma'am."

 **January 22** **nd** **, 1986**

It had been a long, miserable weekend. Charlie hadn't managed to get a shred of his homework done, though he had tried-in good faith- to attempt it. Instead, he had spent most of it in bed, or lying on the couch in front of the television in a near-mummified state of depression. He did, at one point, remember his father commenting that it was a good thing Charlie was still a growing teenager, because he had eaten half the food in the house, including an entire roll of store-bought cookie dough.

Monday morning dawned bleak, cold, and rainy, which fit his mood perfectly as he schlepped out to the bus stop, got on the bus, and sat all the way at the back. Shelby took a different bus, which wasn't a blessing, given he probably could have managed to talk to her on the bus without anyone at school being the wiser. The bus was always full, and noisy, and the bus driver surely wouldn't have noticed if they just sat and talked. He was usually too busy yelling at everyone else to sit down and shut up.

He slid into his usual seat in first period homeroom feeling dead. He and Shelby didn't have the same homeroom, though his best friends, Gill and Trey did. They sat down on either side of him with worried faces. "We heard about what happened, man," Gill said, with a look that expressed absolute sympathy.

"Where did _you_ hear?" Charlie looked at them, stunned. How could word have spread so fast?

"Shelby told Marlena on the bus," Gill shrugged, mentioning his own girlfriend. She and Shelby had been friends for years, and they all rode the same bus. "I had no idea you two were that _serious_."

"Yeah well, we're not now." Charlie wished they would change the subject, though he'd gotten an idea, listening to them. "Hey…Gill. Do you think, if I wrote a note to Shelby, Marlena would deliver it for me? I'm not allowed to go anywhere near her or her dad will kill me." Given Mrs. Cruse was heavily involved in volunteering with clubs, and Mr. Cruse worked at the school, he had no doubt word would get back to her parents if he so much as said hi to her. He couldn't risk even handing a note to her in the hallway or slipping it into her locker.

"Sure. Anything to help, man." Gill nodded. "I can give Marlena something at lunch."

"You've got to swear on your car you won't look at it," Charlie said firmly, and Gill's car was his most prized possession. He and Charlie had spent two years restoring it so Gill could drive it when he got his license.

"You have my word."

* * *

Charlie's stomach was in knots by the end of the day. He had written a note to Shelby right then and there, folded it, and passed it onto Gill. At lunch, Gill confirmed he had handed it off to Marlena in the line, though he came to sit with Charlie instead of with Marlena, who was sitting with Shelby on the other side of the dining hall.

"Man, you can sit with your girlfriend if you want," Charlie assured him.

"Well, she is prettier to look at," Gill grinned, "But you're my best friend. I can't leave you out in the cold. Marlie understands."

The rest of classes, like that morning, had gone by in a haze. Charlie didn't think he'd remembered more than half a dozen statements made by a teacher, and he was sure he had bombed the science quiz he had failed to study for. It was hard to get through classes when Shelby was in the room. While the teachers didn't say anything, Charlie made sure to sit somewhere else, so Shelby wouldn't have to move spots, which kept her with the rest of their friends in any class that didn't have assigned seating. In those classes, they weren't set together anyway. Some teachers made a point of keeping friends and couples separate to minimize distraction. At least, that was the excuse they gave.

Gill ran up to him as Charlie was about to get on his bus. He slapped a note in his hand. "Special delivery," he grinned. "Hope it's good." They weren't hanging out that afternoon because Gill and Marlena had a date, but Charlie didn't expect his friends to change their lives for him.

"Thanks," he replied as he got on the bus, slid all the way to the back, and pulled out the note. It wasn't signed, but it was definitely Shelby's small, neat handwriting. His original note had been brief, a simple statement that he wasn't going to give up on them, and that he loved her. He also suggested that if they lay low for a while and just communicated by note, maybe the whole thing would blow over until he thought of a way for them to spend time together again.

 _You're crazy, you know that? Please don't do anything foolish. Be careful what you write. Take care. I miss you._

Okay, so it wasn't the love note he'd hoped for, but it gave Charlie a little bit of hope. She hadn't said _not_ to write her, just to be careful what he said. That was smart. Maybe he could pretend to be someone else in the notes. Or they could develop a code for what they meant that would look innocuous to other people. It wasn't much, but it was better than nothing.

His slightly better mood evaporated when he got home. His father was there, for one thing. He was also clearly not in a great mood. "What's wrong?" Charlie asked, silently praying it had nothing to do with him and Shelby. "You're home early."

His father looked up from the stack of papers in front of him on the coffee table. "I brought work home. I just couldn't focus in the office," he admitted. "And the hospital called and wanted me to come in to discuss your mother's treatments."

"Why?" Had she gotten worse? His mother had been in the hospital for fourteen days. Suddenly his romantic issues didn't seem as important.

"They want to add another couple of weeks of treatments," his father explained. "But they also want to delay the next chemical one again since she's not over pneumonia."

"Delay?" Charlie dropped his backpack on the floor next to the couch.

"Just a few days, until she finishes the other treatment." His father leaned back, looking older and more tired than Charlie had ever seen him. Or maybe he just hadn't noticed what kind of a toll all of this was taking on his father. "She might be able to come home then." He didn't sound convinced.

Charlie sat down next to him. He didn't want to ask too many questions. It wasn't like he didn't already know the answers anyway. No, Mom wasn't coming home soon. No, the treatments weren't working fast enough. No, his father would insist, his mother wasn't going to die. But that last one, Charlie knew, wouldn't be convincing, because his father didn't believe it.

Apparently, the worst news of the evening was yet to come. "Tim Cruse called me this afternoon."

Charlie cringed. "What did he say?" Did he already know about the notes?

"Nothing out of the ordinary," Cal shrugged. "Just that you're an untrustworthy good-for-nothing without any discipline or sense of decency who shouldn't be allowed in the same building with his daughter, and I ought to feel ashamed for having failed as a parent to instill any sense of morals or responsibility in you."

It might have been the flat tone and lack of vigor behind the words that made them hurt more. Charlie knew his father didn't deserve to be told those kinds of things. "What did you say?" he finally asked.

"Well I couldn't very well tell him to go shove it," his father commented. "I told him you were suffering a punishment worse than death and couldn't possibly be sorrier for what you've done."

That was true, Charlie decided, a little impressed, even if his punishment wasn't one inflicted by his father. "What does Mom know?"

His father opened his eyes. "Not much," he replied, rubbing his temples the way he always did when he had a headache. "All I said was Shelby broke up with you and not to ask about it because you were miserable."

Also mostly the truth. "Thanks, Dad. I kind of hope Mom never finds out."

He didn't like the apologetic look on his father's face. "Charlie, she'll know the first time she makes a PTA meeting and has to be in the same room with Shelby's mom."  
At which point he could kiss any kind of freedom he had goodbye. Not that it would matter, if he couldn't be around Shelby anyway. He decided not to tell his old man about the notes. It would only make things worth for his father if he knew.

With a sinking feeling, Charlie realized that there might be far more to it than that. "Dad… this isn't going to hurt your job is it?" He had never really been a _model_ officer's son anyway, but most of his trouble growing up had been seen as hijinks, or clever pranks, or youthful exuberance. This couldn't be passed over as any of those things.  
"Not unless Cruse tries to raise a stink about it, and I don't think he will," Cal shook his head. "He doesn't have the guts to take it up with President Heimler, if only because he knows we're peripherally related, and there's some of the added protection that comes from being a State Alchemist. We're not exactly expected to be the most typical soldiers in the bunch. But, yes, if he decided to push the issue, it could be."

Damn it. "Dad, I am _so_ sorry."

"You should be." The words were harsh, but not unforgiving. "If you had just waited a couple of years, there wouldn't be anything anyone could do about it except scowl. And the only one who would have been doing that would have been her parents… and maybe your mother a little, because she's always been a nice girl and believes in doing things "the proper way.""

 _If Mom's alive in a couple of years._ Charlie could only hope she would be. "I wish her parents were as understanding about this as you are."

"Yeah, well, we can't all be stupid old fogies." His father gave up on his papers and started putting them away. "What you did was rash, and potentially disastrous, but it isn't yet, and you haven't ruined your lives over it… like her father seems to think. There's nothing about this situation that can't _possibly_ be repaired. Given how stressful things have been around here lately, I'm not even entirely surprised it happened. I'm not even sure what an appropriate _punishment_ would be in this situation as a parent," he admitted. "You've already been forbidden from having anything to do with Shelby, and I can't think of a more miserable torment than that. _My_ father beat me and yelled, and all that did was make me more determined to do everything I could to make him angrier. I was such a defiant ass." He shook his head, putting the last papers back in his files. "You're _not_ children, but you're not adults yet either. I just hope you understand the distinction now, and you both learn from this experience."

Charlie nodded, feeling humbled. "Trust me, I don't think this is a lesson I will ever forget."

"Good." His father stood up. "I don't feel like cooking. What do you say we pick up Aerugean tacos for dinner?"

"Sure." Anything that meant he didn't have to sit down and try and look at the homework from today's lessons he had barely heard for a little longer was a good distraction.

"After that, I don't suppose you know anything about the Cretan insurrection of 1784?"

 **January 23** **rd** **, 1986**

Being at work became more of a hassle every day. It had been bad enough while Alyse was getting her treatments and going home, where she would be sick and miserable for multiple days at a time; those stretches constantly getting longer. Now, with her in the hospital, and Charlie's life imploding in front of Cal's eyes, being at work all day seemed like torture. He got things done, but he wasn't entirely sure how. This morning was no exception as he half-heartedly looked over supply orders for the training program that were the same supply order that went in about this time every year.

Cal hadn't lied to his son, but he hadn't told him everything either. The conversation with Shelby's father had been one of the worst experiences of his life, listening to the man growl, and snarl, and insult not only his only son, but Cal's own parenting. He'd never felt like he was all that good at being a _typical_ parent to begin with. This situation was not improving that image in his own mind either.

It also wasn't that simple. Cal was grateful Cruse wasn't military, and that he didn't think the man was going to try and press the issue beyond what he had done. The kids were both sixteen years old-if just barely- and that meant that there was no one in the country who would call it a criminal act. They were the same age, and they both insisted this had been a consensual choice. It had taken all of Cal's willpower not to blow up at Cruse, who had called him _at his office_ just before Cal had gotten the call to go over to the hospital early. Cal had told the truth, that he had told Cruse his son was suffering a horrific punishment. Though he hadn't told Cruse he was the cause of it. Cal had also told the man that he didn't think _forcing_ the two teenagers to be apart would work in the long run. Cornered kids were far more likely to do something foolish. He'd tried to reason with Cruse on their behalf, within the limited scope of what he could say, but it hadn't worked.

Still, what he hadn't told Charlie, was that he probably _would_ have to warn his superior at work about the situation, in case it got unpleasant. That meant talking to Franz. He also desperately hoped that Alyse _never_ found out about the circumstances of this break up, because the last thing she needed was the stress and agony of dealing with a social situation that was almost her worst parenting nightmare come true. Not that she would ever do what Cruse was doing, but because she would feel like somewhere, she had failed as a parent, even though Charlie had already handled this more maturely than Cal had at that age.

Cal wasn't completely convinced _he_ was handling it correctly either, but he'd told the truth. He didn't know what an appropriate parent punishment would look like in this case. Yelling at Charlie, grounding him, what would it accomplish? It hadn't kept his son from having sex with a girl he was in love with. It wouldn't teach him a lesson. All it might do was make him more determinedly defiant.

Or depressed. Cal was more concerned with the latter. Charlie was about as close to snapping as Cal was. The strain of everything was getting to the boy; a young man with no method for compensation. He wasn't old enough to have a bad habit.

When Tore had almost lost it as a bright new rookie in the Drachman War, Cal had helped him through it by teaching him all the ways soldiers at the time had coped with it all… he'd taught him how to drink, how to smoke, and even hooked him up with his first girl.

That, however, would _not_ qualify as responsible parenting. In hindsight, while it had gotten Tore through the war, it hadn't done him much good. Hell, none of it had done _Cal_ much good. Coping, surviving, wasn't necessarily living, or preserving a man's sanity.

Cal didn't think he needed to ask why now, of all times, Charlie and Shelby had finally made that choice. Cal sought release and comfort the same way –and always had. Except now, when Alyse was too sick for them to do more than cuddle. He'd picked a hell of a point in his life to give up his long list of bad habits.

The best he could do was encourage Charlie to put his time in to his other pursuits: school, spending time working on cars with Gill, and give the situation time. Either Shelby's father would eventually relent, or they would turn eighteen and it wouldn't matter anymore.

The end of the work day couldn't come soon enough. The moment he could, Cal left, with a wave of acknowledgement at Tore, who reminded him that Cal and Charlie were invited over for dinner again that night.

They'd be there, if only because Cal knew it was getting dangerous for the two of them to be home alone, worrying. He swung by the house long enough to grab Charlie, and then they were on their way to the hospital.

When they arrived, Cal found Will waiting just outside Alyse's door. He had never been more grateful for the closeness of Alyse's family than the past few months. Especially the last couple of weeks. They had fallen naturally into a pattern of taking turns coming to sit with her, support her, and make sure Alyse never felt abandoned. Sometimes when he arrived, it was Alphonse, or Elicia, or even Gracia. So Cal was unsurprised to see his wife's brother. "What's going on?" he asked, wondering why Will wasn't in the room _with_ Alyse.

Will turned and smiled at him. "Ren's with Alyse. They had an idea for an alternate alchemy treatment to help with the pneumonia. They're trying it now."

Cal refrained from asking why he hadn't been called first. This was something Alyse could decide for herself. It was her treatment. Besides, it couldn't hurt her, and the alchemical doctor who had been treating her for her cancer wasn't a specialist in _all_ alchemical healing. This was more Ren's specialty. "Any idea how it's going?"

Will shook his head. "They've been at it for almost half an hour."

"Great. More waiting." Charlie dropped down into one of the hard seats in the hallway. He pulled out a book and started reading.

Cal hoped it was homework. Charlie hadn't been particularly forthcoming about the last couple of days of school, other than to tell him earlier he had gotten a C on his last science quiz.

The door to Alyse's room opened, and Cal promptly put his son's homework out of his head. "How is she?" he blurted out to the first person who appeared, which turned out to be Ren.

Ren motioned to him. "Come in, Cal."

He didn't like how that sounded. Nodding, he followed her into Alyse's room. Neither Will nor Charlie followed as Ren closed the door behind him.

Inside, Dr. Xinai and Dr. Martins were standing next to Alyse's bed.

Alyse was sitting up, but she looked exhausted. She didn't smile when he entered.

"All right, someone tell me what's going on." Good news or bad, Cal hated suspense.

The other three people in the room exchanged glances. That didn't bode well.

"The pneumonia is responding to treatment." Ren spoke up first. "Alyse's lungs are almost free of liquid. Another few days, and she should be past it."

"Well that's good… right?" The way they were acting, he couldn't really tell.

Dr. Xinai stepped towards him. "We can cure pneumonia, but even continuing the alchemy sessions, we can't cure the cancer."

 _Can't…_ that was a very final word. Cal swallowed, his mouth suddenly gone dry. "What do you mean you _can't?_ I thought you wanted to do more chemical treatments."

"Cal…" Alyse's eyes were wet.

 _No… this can't be it._

"They won't do any good," Xinai continued. "The cancer isn't responding fast enough, and these last weeks it's starting to come back. At this point, they would be nothing but a delaying tactic."

"Well keep delaying!"

"Calvin, please… don't shout," Alyse spoke softly.

"I'm not going to let you die!"

"Cal," Ren's voice was soft, but sharp. "We're not suggesting you give up. We have another alternative."

"Oh." His fists-which he hadn't even realized he'd clenched- started to ache, and he released them. "Then what do we have to do?"

That sharing of glances again, as if they knew he wasn't going to like the answer.

Dr. Martins spoke. "I can perform a double mastectomy."

A… Blood rushed to Cal's face. His body was quivering. "You want to chop off her _breasts?_ "

"If it means saving her life, yes," Martins replied, her voice quiet and calm. "I've explained the details to Alyse. The surgery itself is very safe. If we remove all of the cancerous tissue, she should be fine."

"But…" But what? What could he say? His world ended if Alyse died. He could only see a bleak, meaningless existence without her. "What if you miss something?"

"With alchemists involved, the chances of that are low." Ren spoke up again. "Yes, it's possible that it's too late, but right now the cancer is isolated to the breast tissue. If we wait for it to metastasize further, it will be too late."

Which meant they were running out of options, and running out of time. "When would you operate?"

"We can't move forward until she's well enough to go under anesthetic," Martins took over the conversation again, "Which means waiting until the pneumonia is gone. I won't risk it before then. So for now, we continue with alchemical session treatments for both the pneumonia and the cancer for as long as we can. Otherwise… we may have to take the risk, but we're not there yet."

The yet seemed hesitant. Cal sat down in the chair next to Alyse's bed, and put one hand on his wife's. She looked nervous, but she wasn't objecting. Clearly she had already accepted that this might be her only option. He squeezed her hand. "All right. Whatever it takes, I won't lose you."

Alyse gave him a weak smile, the one she used when she was trying to be brave. Cal knew the truth, terrified as she was, she was already one of the bravest women he'd ever known. "Hey, it's not like I need breasts to be attractive. At worst, I'll just be a little more average."

If she could be brave, so could he. "One thing you will never be, my love, is average."


	26. Chapter 26

**February 5** **th** **, 1986**

Charlie couldn't believe his luck. He wasn't usually a big fan of field trips, but today's was good for two reasons. One, the entire sophomore class was going to visit a farm outside Central to learn about where their food came from, which meant it was required for all students, and Shelby would also be on the trip. Two, there would be tons of opportunities crammed together in a mob for him to possibly get close enough to her to speak in person. Not that they could sit together on the bus. Charlie sat with Gill, while the girls sat several seats ahead of them.

It was as they were walking through the barns that housed the cows, and all of the farm supplies, that Charlie saw a chance for them to slip away for a few minutes. The man giving them the tour had just started lecturing them on how cows produced milk –an utterly boring topic about which Charlie knew plenty from visiting family in Resembool anyway— and since he and Shelby were standing near the back, it was easy to vanish around a corner and into one of the barns stacked high with hay bales.

As soon as they were out of sight down a row of hay bales where no one was likely to wander upon them, they were kissing passionately, pressed up against the stack of hay. Charlie had meant to talk to her first, but thoughts of talk fled as she returned his kisses with the same pent up longing that had been driving him to distraction. "Oh, god…I've missed you," Charlie murmured between frantic kisses.

"Charlie," she murmured, her skin flushed warm. Her hands pressed against his chest, then slid up and wrapped around his neck. He let his arms loosen around her waist, as he hands went up under her skirt, catching the hem of her panties. He paused, but only for a moment. It would be so easy to just…slide it down…

Shelby didn't fight him. In fact, her hands slid down his chest, her slender fingers catching on his belt buckle.

It wouldn't take long… Charlie edged them sideways a few feet to where the stack of bales was low enough to make a bed instead of a wall. Shelby tumbled willingly with him onto the stack. Then he was on top of her, and he could feel her excitement along with his—

" _Charles Fischer and Shelby Cruse!"_

Charlie froze. Shelby's eyes went wide in terror.

They were _so_ dead.

* * *

" _On a field trip?"_ The furious disbelief in his father's tone made Charlie cringe. The look of betrayal on his father's face did not help. "What were you thinking, Charles?"

Full name…bad news. Charlie stood stiffly in the living room, not sure he dared to answer that question. His father hadn't said a word to him when he picked him up from school. He'd walked into the office, spoken with the principal, and come out, giving him a _let's go_ look. He hadn't spoken the entire drive home either. Charlie had been waiting for the explosion. He and Shelby had both been suspended from school for the next week. He could only imagine what _her_ father was saying.

"We didn't have sex," Charlie pointed out, not expecting it to go any good. The fact that they hadn't gotten that far didn't mean it _wouldn't_ have. Hell, that had certainly been their intention.

"Well you sure _the hell_ weren't holding hands!" His father roared, stalking back and forth in a rage that was starting to scare him. "I _told_ you to be patient, to give this situation time to settle down, to show you were responsible, and _this_ is what you do instead? Get caught breaking school rules _and_ defying orders on a school trip?" He threw his hands in the air, spinning on his heels, and stomping back the other way. "You've really stepped in shit this time. _Suspended_ from school? Your mother is going to have a heart attack…" the wind seemed to fall out of his sails at that point… "This has to stop. If you two can't be mature about this, then you _shouldn't_ see each other."

His only ally had just forsaken him. "But, Dad—"

" _Shut up,_ Charles. Go upstairs. You're grounded, and tomorrow I'm calling the counselor."

Charlie cringed. He'd gone to a counselor for several months after the kidnapping four years ago. He had liked the guy all right, but the last thing he wanted to do was talk to a stranger about how he felt about Shelby, or this whole embarrassing mess. "How long am I grounded?"

His father didn't turn around. "I'll have to talk it over with your mother."

Charlie didn't dare argue. If his father was using his proper name, he didn't have a hope. His parents were never going to trust him again. So he picked up his bag and went upstairs to his room, where he flopped down on the bed, staring up at the ceiling.

They had only meant to steal a few moments to talk…maybe kiss. It had escalated so quickly, but it had felt so _right._ It wasn't fair. Didn't being _in love_ count for something? It was their life, not their parents' life. They should be able to make their own decisions about their relationship.

Not that Charlie had any idea how he was going to fix this. Now even his father wasn't on his side. Aside from the fact that the school notes had not yet been discovered, he didn't know how he would find time with Shelby.

 _When Mom finds out, I may not be alive long enough for it to matter._

 **February 7** **th** **, 1986**

"I can't believe you talked me into this," Bonnie said in a small voice as she glanced out the window of the back seat of the car.

Ian chuckled, and gave her hand a reassuring pat. "Talked you into it? You were the one who was nominated. It would have been a disaster for business if you didn't come. Besides, you look amazing." He couldn't hide the appreciation in his voice. After a lot of Bonnie not making up her mind, Ian had taken her into her own workshop and made her try on dozens of dresses. In the end, he had talked her into a dress of her own design; a strapless, fitted dress that shifted in a subtle ombre between the bluish-green of a peacock's feather in jewel tones, down to a light frothy hue at the bottom. Only the gauzy wrap that she could pull around her shoulders had made Bonnie comfortable enough to wear it. It suited her, more than she would admit. The color set off her fair complexion nicely, and brought out the reddish tones in her rich brown hair, which was curled and pulled half-back. Simple, silver jewelry provided nice accents. Her make-up was subtle and natural, like the girl he loved.

Bonnie sighed. "All right. Let's do this."

The driver in front of Ian's car chuckled. "I'll see you two later," Ted grinned back at them.

Ian chuckled. "Don't wreck my car."

Then the valet waiting at the end of the red carpet opened the door, and Bonnie was being helped out of the car. Ian followed her out onto the carpet, and into the bright stars of flashing cameras.

Bonnie waited for him. Or, he realized as he took her hand, she had momentarily frozen in fear.

"Smile," he whispered into her ear as he slid her arm into his. "This is your night."

Bonnie smiled at him and down they went.

Ian had walked the carpet before, for movie premiers, for these awards, once as a nominee for supporting actor, but usually just as an attendee. That didn't mean he didn't get his usual share of attention. The cameras and the reporters loved everybody, and everyone got mobbed walking down the carpet.

"Ian!" one of the female reporters, Bella Yardley, he recognized from one of the more reputable entertainment magazines was waving his direction. "Ian, who's your date?"

Ian slowed down long enough to smile at her and make sure that Bonnie was a step in front of him. "My date?" he laughed casually. "You've got it backwards, Bella. This is Bonnie Walsh; _she's_ the nominee." If Yardley had done her research, the name would be familiar.

Judging by her expression, she had done her homework. "Of course! Miss Walsh… a moment, please?"

Bonnie tensed. Ian squeezed her arm subtly. "It'll be okay," he whispered while barely moving his mouth. He steered her to the side.

"Miss Walsh, can I call you Bonnie?" Bella asked, holding out a microphone.

Bonnie smiled, looking far more collected than she really was. "That's fine," she replied.

"Great. So, Bonnie, you're nominated for your costume designs for _King of Creta_ –fantastic work!"

"Thank you."

"I admit, I'm a big fan of anything that puts Harry Varnell in a toga of course," Bella chuckled richly, "but your work is stunning. I understand you've also got a commercial line now, available at Silverman's here in central."

"I do," Bonnie nodded. "I'm very excited about it. I love the idea that anyone should be able to express themselves in what they wear, while being fashionable, and comfortable , and without going broke. The Spring line is coming along fabulously, with an even wider range of styles and colors." She glanced at Bella, and then her smile widened a little. "As a matter of fact, isn't that one of my scarves?"

Bella glanced down at the decorate gauzy scarf looped around her neck, as if surprised, then laughed. "It is! Good eye. I guess I can't deny I'm also a fan of your work. The quality is exceptional. All right, one last question." Now her expression looked like she was looking for juicy gossip. "How did you wrangle Ian Elric as your date tonight? He's a very hot commodity."

Bonnie looked at Ian for a moment, then turned back to Bella with a confident little smile. "Oh, that was easy. He begged."

"That was _brilliant_ ," Ian chuckled after they had walked away. "Begged! That may be my favorite moment this evening… except for when you win."

" _If_ ,"she corrected him. "We shouldn't get too cocky."

"You be humble. I'll be cocky for both of us." He was having a great time. Three more times on the carpet he stood there in his tuxedo and smiled at cameras while Bonnie was interviewed. She didn't need his help to make herself look good. As she got used to it, she was her usual charming, pleasant self. He could tell that the press loved her, and that was good, because that meant more people would like her, and that was good for business.

Ian got his own share of questions, mostly about his recent films that had just come out, or were coming out soon, and wouldn't be up for awards until next year's ceremony. He answered them, then managed to steer conversation back to Bonnie.

Finally they made it inside and to their seats, where Bonnie finally relaxed a little. "This is it." Ian grinned.

Bonnie nodded. "Thank you for being here."

"I wouldn't miss this for anything." The orchestra began to play, and Ian sat back to enjoy the show.

He always enjoyed attending the award shows. They were fun to watch by themselves, and even when he wasn't up for any awards, Ian enjoyed watching others rewarded for their hard work in a tough profession.

Tonight, he could hardly wait for the technical awards to get to costume design, even if it did only turn out to be to hear Bonnie's name said aloud in the list of talented nominees. Despite his confident statements to Bonnie, he knew full well that her designs were up against some stiff competition.

"And now, the nominees for best costume design."

Ian sat up a little straighter. _Here we go._ He tried to look calm and collected as they read off all of the nominees and the films for which they were nominated. _I wasn't this excited when I was nominated._

"And the winner is… Bonnie Walsh, for _King of Creta!_ "

The room erupted in clapping and cheers. Ian almost bounced out of his seat. "You did it!" he turned to Bonnie, who was sitting there, looking stunned. Ian smiled, and nudged her. "Bonnie… go!"

She blinked twice, then seemed to come to herself. Bonnie was on her feet, moving towards the stage. She smiled graciously as she accepted the statuette, then turned to the microphone.

 _You can do it,_ Ian willed positive thoughts in her direction. Being the center of mass public attention was definitely not in Bonnie's comfort zone. She had practiced a speech in his apartment –at his insistence- just so she wouldn't freeze up on stage.

Bonnie was smiling. "Thank you… everyone," she began. "I really never thought I'd be up here. Everyone's work is so incredible. I'd like to thank the awards committee, and Lorenzo Valens, the director of _King of Creta_ for his support of my designs…the entire wardrobe team, thank you. The cast, for making my work look good on screen. My parents… Mom, Dad, I couldn't have made it this far without your support, and letting me turn ever spare scrap of fabric in the house into drama costumes." That got a chuckle from the audience. "My little sister, thanks June… and, I'd especially like to thank my boyfriend, for cheering me on, for always supporting my work… and for helping me find the courage to get up here, and stand in front of you tonight." She smiled in his direction. "Thank you, Ian." With a last little bow, she left the stage.

For a moment, Ian sat too stunned to speak as the audience cheered her off the stage, before turning their attention to the next announcers. Bonnie had thanked him on stage… Bonnie had called him her boyfriend _on stage…._ on television… in front of everyone watching.

He was on his feet as she rejoined him in the row. "Congratulations," he said in her ear as she reached him.

Bonnie smiled, and only as he took her hand did he realize she was trembling. "Thank you," she said in little more than a whisper. She clung to his hand.

Ian helped her sit, before she fell over. He decided not to ask if Bonnie realized what she had said.

"How was it?" she whispered as she turned her eyes to the stage.

Ian replied with all seriousness. "Best speech I've ever heard."

 **February 8** **th** **, 1986**

If he never saw the inside of a hospital again, it would be too soon. Unfortunately, Cal could be fairly certain that he would at some point. He just hoped that soon, it wouldn't be because his wife was in one. He waited impatiently while the Doctors finished their examinations, holding Alyse's hand firmly in his. "Well?" he finally asked impatiently.

Alyse looked irritated, but he couldn't summon anything resembling feeling apologetic.

Dr. Xinai straightened up and began rolling up the silk cloth wrapped around his hand. "The pneumonia is gone."

Cal waited, but the man was quiet so long he couldn't take it. "And the cancer?"

"We will move forward with the surgery," he replied as if Cal hadn't been rude. "It's growing again. I'm afraid there's no time."

Dr. Martins nodded. "I'm putting it on the schedule for Wednesday afternoon."

That was two days away. Cal felt Alyse's hand tighten her grip on his, and he checked his tongue. "Thank you, doctor… doctors."

"If all goes right, you'll be cancer free in a couple of days." Dr. Martins sounded reassuring as she smiled at Alyse. "Excuse us a minute." She gestured to Dr. Xinai, and both physicians left the room.

"If all goes right," Cal repeated the words as the door closed behind them. He couldn't keep out the bitterness. Only a tight grip on his hand made him turn.

Alyse looked up at him, her deep green eyes tired, and sad.

His anger left him, and for a moment, Cal just pulled her close, enfolding her in both arms as he leaned over the bed. The soft silk of her head-scarf rubbed his chin, and he could feel her slender frame in his embrace, leaning into him for support.

There were no words. Four years ago, they had been on the verge of divorce, and now…now he couldn't stand the idea of living in world without Alyse in it. She was the center of his whole world, and the best part of it. This was their only chance left.

"It'll be all right," Alyse whispered, and Cal bit back a sob that threatened to come from his throat. She was consoling _him_?

He nodded anyway. "I love you, Alyse. You mean everything to me."

"I know," she replied softly. "I love you, too and, I'm sorry."

"Sorry, for what?" Cal looked down at her.

Alyse sighed. "For every time I've ever complained, or been particular, or yelled… anything that has wasted the time we've had. You're a wonderful husband, and a good father. I couldn't have made it these last few months without you."

"I'd do anything for you, you know that." He kissed her softly. _A good father…_ He hadn't had a chance to tell her about Charlie's suspension from school. Perhaps he would tell her _after_ the surgery.

She returned the kiss. "And I will do anything I have to. I'm scared, Cal, but… I'm not done yet. I don't plan to die like this, or leave you, and Gloria, and Charlie. If the doctors feel confident that this will work, then I'll do it…and I'll do it without regrets."

"My brave…beautiful girl." Cal held her tighter as a soft sniffle came from her. "I'm right here with you… forever."

* * *

 _Author's Note: 8/3/2016 Happy August! I hope everyone has had an enjoyable summer (or winter!). I'd like to apologize for the scattered nature of this summer's posting schedule. I've had several trips and activities (and camping with my son with the Boy Scouts in 112 degree heat for a week) that have pulled me away from my computer! Thanks to all of you for your patience!_


	27. Chapter 27

**February 9** **th** **, 1986**

Alphonse could think of little except for the unpleasant truth that tomorrow his little girl would be going through surgery- a lifesaving surgery to be fair, but still not one he would have wished on his beautiful daughter.

He arrived at the hospital just after lunch, spelling Elicia, who had been there all morning keeping Alyse company. "Finally, I get some time with the prettiest girl I know," he smiled as he took the vacant chair at Alyse's bedside.

His daughter smiled, but shook her head. "That would be Gloria, Daddy."

"As lovely as my granddaughter is, I'm afraid I'm biased on the subject," Al replied without hesitating. He leaned over and kissed Alyse on the forehead. "Though you should know, that lovely daughter is on her way back to Central."

"What?" Alyse looked upset. "But her classes…"

"Can be made up," Al replied firmly. The moment Gloria had heard her mother was having surgery, she had been on a train for home. "She called this morning from a train station phone half-way back to Central. She caught an express train and she'll be here by morning."

Alyse looked like she wanted to be angry, but moments later she nodded in acceptance. "I'll be glad to see her."

"I thought you might." Al reached out and gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. "Daddy, promise me something."

"Anything, Alyse."

"If… if something happens to me, ever, not just if this doesn't work… will you and Mom take care of Cal for me?"

"You know we'll watch over your family," Al replied, chuckling softly.

"I mean it… Cal in particular," Alyse replied with firm emphasis on her husband's name. "I'm afraid…" she paused, looking deeply thoughtful, and Al did not interrupt. "I'm worried about him. He's never been good at being alone, and this has been so hard on him."

"We'll be there for him," Al promised. They could only do what their son-in-law would let them, but he would do his best. "I take it you've talked about…everything."

Alyse nodded. "We've had things settled for months… just in case."

Al didn't ask about those conversations. He could imagine it wasn't pleasant, discussing what to do in the likelihood that Alyse died of her illness. He and Elicia had certainly had discussions in the past about what would happen if he died on a mission, but those had always been hypotheticals, not with the immediate threat of death facing either of them. At least, it had never felt that way to him, though he wondered now if it had to Elicia…and he decided that at some point he should probably ask her. "Well, let's hope it's all for nothing. The outlook is good for tomorrow."

"You don't have to put on a brave face for me, Daddy."

Al grinned. "What brave face? I'm the optimist in the family, remember?"

That got a smile out of his daughter. "Well then, Mister Optimistic. Do you think you can talk them into letting me have real food for dinner tonight? I don't get to eat anything tomorrow, and I'd rather not have to eat hospital food."

Now there was a request he might be able to do something about. "I'll see what I can do."

 **February 10** **th** **, 1986**

Gloria got off the train in Central, greeted by thick morning fog that made it seem even earlier than it was. _How fitting._ With only one small suitcase, she was off the train ahead of most of the other passengers, looking around for a ride. She wasn't entirely sure who to expect, other than Grandpa Al had promised she wouldn't have to catch a bus.

"Over here, Gloria," she heard a voice calling from near the gate, and she turned to see her Uncle Will waiting with his car.

They hugged briefly, and then he put her suitcase in the trunk and they got in.

"Is everyone already at the hospital?" Gloria asked as they pulled away from the curb.

Her uncle nodded. "They let your father stay over last night. Charlie went over with Ren this morning."

"He's not in school today?"

"You're not," Will pointed out with a comforting smile.

"Point taken." Gloria leaned back in the seat and closed her eyes. It had been a long trip, and she hadn't slept well. The next thing she knew, they were pulling up outside the hospital.

Uncle Will parked the car, and they went inside, and right up the elevator to the fourth floor. When Gloria entered the waiting room, she could see that almost all of her family was there.

Grandma Elicia and Great-grandma Gracia were sitting in chairs, talking quietly. Charlie was slumped in a chair on the opposite wall. Grandpa Al and her father were talking quietly. She guessed that Aunt Ren might be in with her mother.

The moment her father saw her, Gloria found herself enfolded in one of his rare but highly emotional hugs. "I'm glad you made it," he spoke softly.

"How's Mom?"

"They're almost ready to send her down to surgery." Her father straightened up, his tone calmer than the look in his eyes. The worry was only there a moment, then it was gone. "It will be a few hours before we see her."

Gloria nodded, sorry she had missed the opportunity to talk to her mother beforehand. Even she didn't have the power to make trains hurry. "Well I'm not going anywhere." It wasn't as if she hadn't brought plenty to do with her. She had her syllabi, and her assignments.

After hugs from the rest of her older family, she took a seat in the empty chair next to her brother, who was staring blankly at a book in front of him, clearly not giving it any real attention. "Hey, you okay?"

Charlie looked up. "Oh, Gloria, you're here."

"Yeah. Wow you're observant today." Gloria sighed, then lightly punched her brother in the arm.

Charlie shrugged. "Rough day."

Gloria understood. "I'm sure this will go faster than it seems. Book for school?"

He looked at the book as if he hadn't realized he was holding it. "Oh, yeah."

Gloria pulled out one of her own textbooks. They were in for a long wait.

* * *

Four hours, Cal had been told the surgery itself would only be four hours. This, it seemed, did not account for time beforehand when he had been exiled from the room, or the time afterwards during immediate recovery before Cal could go in and talk to his wife. So he was stuck in the waiting room, with nothing to do but fret, and pace, and worry.

He knew that no one else in the family was absorbed in the tasks they had brought to occupy their time. Still, everyone tried not to look at the clock. Books, embroidery projects, games of cards, plenty of distractions, but none that worked for Cal.

Cal hated waiting in hospital rooms, especially for other people. He had gotten used to finding himself in them over the years. It was a hazard of the job, and it was usually work related injuries. He paced. He looked at the window. He paced some more. He grew agitated, impatient… fidgety.

Family members came and went, taking turns getting food, or going to the restroom. Will brought Cal a coffee, which he drank, though he didn't really taste it. He didn't even try to eat.

It was taking too long. Alyse had gone into surgery right before lunch –a nurse had come to tell them that she had finally been wheeled down to the operating theater- but it was almost five in the evening without word.

A hand on his arm made him jump. Spinning, Cal almost ran into Tore. "When did you get here?"

"Just a minute ago," Tore replied, though he looked like he wanted to make a snarky comment about being ignored. "You should eat something."

"I'm not hungry."

"Cal—"

"I can't eat," he reiterated, "And I'm not leaving. Not until someone comes out here and tells me that Alyse is okay and I get to _see_ my wife."

Tore gave in. "All right. We'll wait."

Cal was about to say there were enough people waiting, when he realized that the room was no longer full. He had vague memories of his father-in-law taking family out to get a real meal. Cal hadn't ordered anything. At the moment, he and Tore were the only people in the room. "Sure. Thanks for coming."

"Charisa told me not to come home until it's over and I was sure you were okay."

"Cal."

He turned abruptly back around, to see Ren coming down the hallway. She looked tired. "How's Alyse?" News, at last. He tried not to grip her arms too hard when he realized he had grabbed his sister-in-law.

"Recovering," Ren replied. "The surgery and reconstruction took longer than expected, but… we got it all."

"So it's gone. The cancer's gone?" He needed to be absolutely certain.

Ren nodded. "Yes, it's gone. She'll need regular checkups just to make sure it stays that way, but right now, there's not a cancerous cell in her body. I double-checked myself."

It was gone, and she was alive. "When can I see her?"

"In a couple of hours." Ren stepped back, and Cal let go of her. "She's awake, but she won't be back in her room until we're sure there's no complications after the surgery."

Cal nodded. He'd been through enough surgeries, he understood the caution. "All right. Let me know the minute she's out."

"I will," Ren promised, then she smiled. "You should get some dinner."

Why did everyone keep saying he needed to eat today? Cal shook his head. "After I see, Alyse."

"It's going to be a while."

"I'll wait."

* * *

Charlie tried to ignore his sister's unhappy glare as he ate his meal. Through family conversation, it had come out that he was suspended for kissing his girlfriend on a field trip, and Gloria had reacted with a level of ferocity that Charlie would have expected from Mom… if she had known, which he was pretty sure she still didn't.

"I can't believe you were that careless," Gloria hissed quietly across the table, so the conversation wouldn't be heard in the rest of the restaurant. Charlie didn't think even the rest of the table could hear given the general noise. "I thought you weren't allowed to see her anymore."

"That was her parents' idea, not ours," Charlie scowled between bites of hamburger. "It's not like we did anything illegal. We were just kissing."  
The skeptical expression on his sister's face said clearly that Gloria did not believe that for a second. "They _suspended_ you. They don't do that for PDA, not even on field trips.

Don't do something stupid, Charlie."

"Yeah well, there's no chance of that. Now even Dad won't let me talk to her," Charlie replied. He didn't mention the notes at school. The worst part about being suspended was that they couldn't even communicate covertly. Days without Shelby was like days without food. He couldn't get her out of his mind. Missing her was like a whole new hunger, and it was killing him.

Gloria stabbed her salad with a fork. "I can't say I blame him."

"Gee, thanks for the support, Sis."

"I just don't want you to get in trouble. You're my brother. I care. Okay?"  
He looked away from her piercing gaze. She was worried. They were all tense and worried. "Yeah. Okay." He stuffed another bite of burger in his mouth.

scene break scene break scene break

Even knowing that Alyse was in recovery and that would take time did not make the wait easier. It was another two hours before Dr. Martins came out. "You can see her now."  
Cal, who had finally sat down and was attempting to play cards with Tore –and losing terribly- dropped his hand and hurried down the hall, following the doctor. "How did it go?"

"Everything went fine," Martins assured him with a kind smile. "With alchemical help on the reconstruction, there should even be minimal scarring once her chest heals."

"That's good." Cal wasn't even sure he could visualize his wife without her breasts, though he knew he'd get used to it, with time. She would live. They had time. "How long can I stay?"

"Not too long. She's still on heavy pain medication, and she needs rest."

Cal didn't argue. At least he would see her. At least there _was_ a future.

He still wasn't prepared for the sight of Alyse lying flat on her back on the bed, tucked under the sheets. Under the hospital gown he could see that her entire chest was wrapped in fresh bandaging. Her eyes were open, and they tracked to him the moment he entered the room.

"I'll leave you alone."

Cal hardly heard her as he hurried across the room and leaned over the bed, taking Alyse's hand in his right hand, and reaching out with his left to gently caress her face.

"Thank god, you're still with me."

Alyse tried to smile, but instead, tears began to leak out of her eyes. "Calvin…"

"Shhh." He wiped them away tenderly with his thumb and forefinger. "Alyse, sweetheart… it's all right. You're going to be _fine._ Dr. Martins and Ren both told me you're all right.

The cancer's gone…" The tears didn't stop, and Cal felt his pulse respond as his own anxiety spiked. "'Lyse, honey, what's wrong?"

She looked heartbroken. "I'm sorry. I just… I thought I'd be okay, you know? But I-I'm not. I can't even _look_ … they-they're gone!" And then the tears came in a flood, and Cal understood.

He leaned over, sliding his arm around her shoulders as he sat on the edge of the bed, giving Alyse an awkward but much needed hug. He didn't say anything. He just held her. Eventually, the tears lessened.

Alyse blinked several times, clearing her eyes. "I'm so vain… this is ridiculous."

"In your defense, they were the most beautiful breasts on the planet." Cal tried a smile, hoping it might cheer her up.

For a moment, he thought Alyse was going to cry again. "Yeah… they were." Then she once more fell silent.

"It'll be good to have you home," Cal said when he couldn't take the silence anymore. "We've missed you. Even the cat misses you. Gloria's here. She arrived this afternoon. The family went to get food, but everyone will be back soon."

Alyse nodded. "Please… tell them to come tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?"

Alyse nodded, just slightly. "I can't face anyone tonight. I don't want them to see me like this."

No one was going to like that, but Cal couldn't argue. He wouldn't go against what Alyse wanted. "I'll tell them. I'm sure they'll understand. Besides," he tried another soft smile,

"It means I get you all to myself for a while."

"No." Alyse swallowed, tears budding at the corners of her eyes again. "Cal… could you… could you go. Please?"

His heart sank into the pit of his stomach. "Go? Alyse, why would you want me to-"

" _Please._ I'm tired…and I'm hurting and I… I just want to be alone for a while."

Something inside him shattered. "If that's what you want." He nodded, and slowly wormed his arm back out from under her. He couldn't stop himself from kissing her cheek as he stood. "I'll be back as soon as visiting hours start tomorrow. I love you."

When she didn't respond, he let himself out.

Dr. Martins was waiting in the hallway. She looked surprised to see him. "Is everything all right?" she asked.

"I'm not sure," Cal admitted as he pushed past her. "She asked me to leave."

* * *

Tore stayed in the waiting room. This was not the time for him to intrude on his best friend's privacy. He was shocked to see Cal again just a few minutes later, walking quickly through, as if he had forgotten Tore was there.

At least, until Tore got to his feet.

"Are you coming?" Cal asked without stopping.

Tore fell into step beside his friend, and got a good look at Cal's eyes. He had seen that look on many men's faces, including Cal's. Though it had been a long time. "Can I stop you?" he asked, though he was pretty sure he knew the answer.

Cal shook his head. "I'm going to need someone to walk me home."

Tore wanted to object, and he would probably, repeatedly. For the moment, he gave in to the inevitable, and sighed. "I've got your back."

Tore followed Cal to a bar that was only a few short blocks away. It had been around for longer than Tore could recall, though the owner had changed once or twice. Still, it was one the officers frequented regularly, mostly because the owner and his employees were known for discretion.

Which was good, since Tore doubted news of a three-star getting soused would go over well at Headquarters. He tried, mostly in vain, to suggest they just have a couple of beers and go home. His family would be wondering why he wasn't at the hospital when they got back from dinner. Any thoughts he might even attempt to convince Cal he didn't want to be drunk tonight fled when they hit the bar.

"Whisky straight," Cal told Gaven, the bartender.

Gaven gave him a curious look but complied, and didn't say a word when Cal motioned for him to leave the bottle.

"What'll it be?" Gaven looked at Tore.

"I'll have an Aerugean ale." He wasn't sure if he would be nursing it down all night, or if this might be over faster than he had thought. Clearly Cal didn't want to _think_ about his problems tonight.

As much as he was drinking, it also didn't look like Cal would be walking out of here entirely under his own power. _Which is why he brought me along. Damn it, man. What happened back there?_

* * *

"What do you mean he's _gone_?" Gloria's voice was sharper than she had intended, but she couldn't imagine why her father wasn't still at the hospital. They had just gotten back from dinner to find the waiting room completely empty.

Her Aunt Ren, changed out of her surgical scrubs and ready to go home, looked apologetic. "Alyse is tired. She requested no guests tonight. We're all welcome to come visit tomorrow. Your father left with Tore Closson a while ago."

Gloria tried to calm down. Her mother was fine, she just wanted quiet. Her father had left because there was no reason to stay. "Thank you, Auntie."

"Well, now what?" Charlie asked.

"We'll take you home," Uncle Will said with a sympathetic smile. "Then we can all come back in the morning."

"In groups," her Grandpa Al suggested. "If she wants it quiet, she probably won't want to see us all at once."

"Groups then," Will nodded. "Gloria and Charlie should get to see her first."

It would do. Gloria nodded. "All right, let's go home."

* * *

Tore grunted as he made it to the top of the stairs in Cal's town home with his drunk friend half-conscious on his shoulder. He wanted to blame the difficulty of the task on Cal, but he had a feeling it had more to do with the fact that he spent most of his time doing a desk job. If anything, Cal had lost weight over the past few months since Alyse had been diagnosed.

"There we go," he said as he lowered Cal onto the bed. Cal grunted, but that was the extent of his response as he rolled over. In a few moments he was snoring loudly.

Tore left him to sleep it off. He closed the door and turned around before he realized he wasn't alone.

Charlie was standing in the hall in his boxers and a t-shirt, rumpled hair and bleary expression making it clear their arrival had woken him. He looked worried, but not confused.

Tore sighed. "Hey, Charlie."

The disheveled teenager frowned. "Is Dad okay?"

Part of him wanted to lie, but Tore didn't like lying. Given Cal's rants about his son lately, Charlie was definitely _not_ a kid anymore. At least, no more than Tore had been at that age. "He'll live," he replied. "It's been a rough day."

Charlie nodded, though from the look on his face, Tore had a feeling he'd already figured out his father was drunk. Why else would Tore have had to come upstairs? "Is there something they didn't tell us about Mom?"

"No. I'm sure you know everything," Tore assured him before a yawn cracked his jaw. Damn it was late. It was almost morning. "How about a cup of coffee?" There was no way he was going to sleep right now, and he was too tired to go home.

"Sure," Charlie nodded. "We should be quiet. Don't want to wake the beast." Clearly, he was referring to his sister. Together they walked back downstairs and into the kitchen.

Tore turned on the light and Charlie headed for the percolator. They worked in relative silence until the coffee was ready.

Tore poured coffee for them both, and set one of them in front of Charlie. "Thanks. It's nice to not have someone treat me like a kid. Seems like that's all that happens anymore around here."

Having heard all of Cal's rants at work, or after work where they wouldn't be overheard, Tore decided it would be wiser not to mention that he _knew_ about Charlie's recent indiscretions. "Yeah, when I was your age, I found out just how badly that mattered to me."

"Oh?" Charlie didn't look particularly interested.

"Yup. You should ask Fullmetal about it." Tore grinned. "He's the one who had to deal with me. When I was sixteen I screwed things up with my girlfriend, dropped out of school, and ran away for several months."

Charlie's mouth dropped open. "You ran away? What did you do?"

Tore sipped the thick black liquid. "Learned to farm, do all sorts of odd jobs, and found out how much hangovers suck. Long story short, I'd be dead if Fullmetal hadn't tracked me down and brought me home, but I learned a lot from that experience that I don't regret."

"So are you a sympathetic ear or a cautionary tale?" Charlie asked.

Tore almost spat out his next sip of coffee. "Can I be both?" he asked. "Not that it matters tonight. I'm just here as a friend."

"Thanks," Charlie replied, "For being Dad's friend, I mean." There was a very serious expression on the teenager's face. "So… whatever happened to the girlfriend you screwed things up with?"

 _Good catch kid._ Tore chuckled. "Well, after a lot more screw ups, a few years, and a war… I married her."


	28. Chapter 28

**February 11** **th** **, 1986**

Cal had no idea what time it was when his back hit the bed. Late. That was the best he could come up with. He closed his eyes, letting the world swim around him. The only stable thing was the solid mattress beneath him, and the scent of Alyse's lotion on the sheets he hadn't changed since she went into the hospital. It smelled like lavender and brought to mind her soft skin, her silky hair…her beautiful body... _Oh god. I didn't drink enough.  
_  
It was his last conscious thought before morning light found him through the blinds, stabbing at his eyes, making his head throb with promises of worse to come. Only inhuman effort and necessity pried him from the bed. Cal slumped into the bathroom, relieved himself, and took a shower before he dragged on jeans and a t-shirt and slogged downstairs.  
He could smell coffee, bacon, and eggs. Charlie must have made breakfast.

"And how are we feeling this morning?"

Tore was at his breakfast table, eating with Charlie.

Cal grimaced. "I've got a rock band in my skull, but I feel better than expected… which worries me." He had the sinking feeling he was still partially drunk. "How much did I have last night?" he asked as he poured a cup of thick, black coffee into his favorite blue mug.

"Given I haven't seen you drink like that since Drachma?" Tore commented. "I think you broke a bar record last night."

Cal grunted. "Doesn't answer my question. I've broken records in many bars in my lifetime." He put some bacon and eggs on a plate and joined them, dropping into the nearest open chair with enough force it jarred his skull. Cal winced, rubbing his temples with his fingers.

"You finished the bottle."

"Shit." _Yep, still drunk._ That hadn't been a small bottle either. Cal was frankly amazed he'd made it home alive. He had vague, fuzzy memories of drinking water…maybe eating… something. Probably at Tore's insistence. It had not been a short night. Everything from holding it together the last few months had just kind of…overflowed. He upended his mug of coffee and drained it, waiting for the hot caffeine to bring back some semblance of humanity. Slowly, it occurred to him that this entire conversation was happening in front of his sixteen-year-old son. "If you _ever_ mention this…"

"Oh, I won't!" Charlie exclaimed, shaking his head. "No reason for Mom to kill us both."

He still hadn't told Alyse about the boy's suspension. After last night, Cal had no idea if there ever would be a time that was less than awful. "Smart boy." He held out his mug at his son. "More coffee."

Charlie complied without a word of objection. "Here, Dad."

"Thanks." Cal took another sip, then looked at Tore. "So what are you still doing here? I thought Charisa was expecting you home."

Tore chuckled. "My exact instructions were not to come home until I was sure you were okay. Well, after I poured you into bed at three in the morning it was too late to try walking home, so I didn't try. We talked for a bit, then I passed out on the couch, and by the time I woke up again, there was food."

"You cooked?" Cal looked at Charlie.

His son nodded. "Yeah. Gloria and I made breakfast."

Gloria. _Oh, shit. Gloria._ "Where's your sister?"

"She left already to go see mom." Charlie looked confused. "Dad, is that a problem?"

Cal had sinking feeling. "Not yet…but it might be, for both of us." The throbbing in his head got worse. "I haven't told your mother about you yet."

"Shit." Charlie's face went pale.

Tore looked sympathetic. "Someone need a ride over to the hospital?"

* * *

Alyse wasn't sure what was tougher to take; the news that her son had been suspended from school for a week, or the fact that she had only found out about it most of the way through said week from her daughter who had been in town for barely a day.

Gloria looked sorry she'd said anything. "I'm sorry, Mom. I assumed you knew."

Alyse sighed. "It's all right, Gloria. It's not your fault. I'm sure they were just waiting for a good time to tell me." Which, admittedly, there hadn't been. Part of her wanted to be angry with Cal, but she already knew what he would say; she'd been ill, and he hadn't wanted her to be more stressed out than she already was. He didn't want to worry her. Which was so very… like him. "Where are your father and brother this morning?"

Gloria sighed. "When I left, Charlie was eating breakfast. Daddy was still asleep, but Mr. Closson was over, so I'm sure they'll be here as soon as they're ready to come over."

At least they would have a ride. Alyse didn't ask why Tore was at her house. "That's good. I want to see them." She felt bad about last night, but coming out of surgery, groggy, in pain, and trying to absorb the reality that her breasts were just _gone_ had been more overwhelming than she'd anticipated. She'd spent the last several months smiling, holding it together, and she just couldn't do it anymore now that it was over.

"Did you sleep okay?"

Alyse nodded. "Pretty well. These aren't exactly comfortable beds."

"Aunt Ren told me this morning you get to come home in a couple of days." Gloria smiled. "I wish I could stay longer. I promised my professors I would be back in classes by Monday."

That meant she would have to leave tomorrow evening to get back, at the very latest. Alyse reached out and took her daughter's hand. "You need to get back to school. I'm going to be fine, and we can talk on the phone any time." She would be home for a while, just recovering, so anytime her daughter called she would be likely to reach her. "I'm going to need to consider a new outfit for Urey and Raina's wedding," she added with a soft smile. "I'm not sure anything I have now will drape right."

"Well, you know," Gloria chuckled, "there's a lot of new styles out now designed to show off flatter figures. Maybe you should look into some new fashion."

Alyse looked at her full-chested daughter and laughed. "What would you know about fashion for flat women?"

Gloria rolled her eyes. "More than half of my friends are dancers. I was the _only_ girl in the company who had to wear extra reinforcement in her leotards, remember?"

"You're right." Alyse felt lighter, more normal, having casual conversation with her daughter. "I'm sure I can find something spectacular."

They continued to chat for another hour before a knock on the door revealed the arrival of Cal and Charlie, and there was a flurry of hugs as the four of them were together for the first time in months without the likelihood of death hanging over their heads. Alyse smiled, and didn't mention what Gloria had told her. For a few minutes, she just wanted peace in her family.

It was only after Charlie and Gloria left the room to go find them all lunch that she brought it up to her husband. "Cal, why didn't you tell me about Charlie?"

Her husband winced visibly. "I meant to, but the timing always seemed lousy. So I thought I'd tell you after the surgery," he replied. "He'll be back to school on Monday, and hopefully they've learned their lesson and this whole mess can blow over."

Alyse shook her head. "They really suspended him for making-out with a girl on a field trip?"

Cal shrugged. "To be fair, the report says the teacher caught him with his hands up her blouse….and hers under his shirt."

It was just hard to wrap her head around it. Not that Alyse didn't believe that her son _wouldn't_ make out with his girlfriend, but that both of them were foolish enough to get caught in a compromising position. Shelby had always been such a reasonable, responsible girl; a good influence on Charlie. There was something else odd about this whole thing. "I thought you said they broke up."

Cal froze. "Did I?"

"You did."

"Maybe it would be more accurate to say that her father _broke_ them up," he corrected, looking uneasy.

"For…similar behavior?" She didn't like the expression on her husband's face. He looked guilty. Why would Cal look guilty? _Oh no._ "Cal…"

He nodded. "They did. I found a condom in Charlie's bathroom trash can and he confessed." His expression turned even more miserable. "I'm the one who told him they'd better come clean to her parents. I'm surprised Charlie hasn't blamed me for her parents' reactions."

"It's not your fault." Alyse closed her eyes, letting heavy lids rest. She was still so tired. "If _I'd_ ever slept with a boy my father would have locked me up for the rest of high school and transmuted the offending boy into cockroach."

She felt Cal's hand on hers. "Then it's probably a good thing we didn't meet in high school."

"Calvin, when you were Charlie's age, I was seven years old."

He shuddered. "Don't remind me."

Alyse opened her eyes again. She felt like she should be more furious, but she was too tired and drugged to summon any real fury. That, and the last few months had given her a lot of perspective and time to think. "So what's the punishment? I'm assuming you _did_ discipline our son."

"Oh, his ass is grounded," Cal replied firmly. "I told him how long would have to wait until I discussed it with you, but I was thinking at least a month _after_ he gets back to school. No going out after school, no movies, no hanging out with friends, just come home, chores, homework." He shook his head. "His last few grades have been crap."

Not surprising, given he did almost all of his studying with Shelby. "Give him time."

Cal was looking at her funny. "I thought you'd be furious."

"I should be. I probably will be later. Right now… I'm just glad I'm still here to deal with this," Alyse admitted. "There are worse things in life than a traumatic teen romance."

"Tell that to our son."

"I will… but not using those words."

 **February 13** **th** **, 1986**

Bringing Alyse home made Cal's world feel like it was starting to fall back into place. Gloria had gotten on the train the night before to go back to school, but not before she helped Cal and Charlie do a thorough deep-cleaning on the house in anticipation of Alyse's return. While they hadn't exactly pitted the place out while Alyse was gone, there had been a lot of chores that had slipped, usually involving scrubbing, and some of the laundry.

"The house looks great," Alyse complimented him as they came up the stairs from the garage into the living room. "It's so nice to be home. What's that smell?"

"Dinner," Cal smiled. He had left Charlie in charge of cooking the meatloaf, garlic bread, and steamed mixed vegetables. "Are you hungry?" he asked hopefully. Now that treatments were done, he hoped she would have her appetite back.

Alyse flashed him a smile. "Famished. It smells delicious." She held on to his arm as they went into the dining room, and he pulled out the chair and let her sit down.

"Right where you belong," he whispered, kissing her on the cheek before taking the chair beside her. She wasn't wearing anything fancy: jeans, and a loose red-and-white floral patterned sweater that buttoned down the front so she wouldn't have to struggle with getting dressed, or lifting her arms over her head while her chest was healing. The scarf on her head was red silk. She was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen.

Alyse blushed, and he realized he was staring.

"Tonight, may I present, my gourmet cooking skills," Charlie quipped as he set plates down in front of his parents with thick slabs of meatloaf, freshly toasted bread, and the veggies.

"Good work, kid." Cal picked up his silverware and motioned for Charlie to join them.

"Thank you," Alyse smiled as she stabbed a piece of broccoli with her fork. "It looks great."

"All I really had to do was not overcook it," Charlie admitted as he sat down. It was good to see the boy smiling and talking a little, even if it was just about dinner. Cal had spent most of the week dealing with sullen-and-sulky.

"Well it's very good," Alyse assured him after she had swallowed her first bite.

They ate in relative quiet, just enjoying the novelty of being a family again, together at the dinner table. Cal found himself looking forward to summer, when Gloria would be home too, and all four of them could eat like this.

Charlie finally broke the quiet. His earlier cleverness had faded. "So, how dead am I?" He knew that his parents had talked about his suspension, and the reason behind it.

Cal set down his after-dinner cup of coffee. "You're still grounded."

"I figured that much," he replied fatalistically. "How long?"

"Until after Spring Break." Given they were traveling to Resembool over Spring Break for Urey and Raina's wedding-which Alyse refused to miss- the last week shouldn't be too terrible. "No friends. No after school activities. No phone calls. No television. No dating… anyone." Not that he expected Charlie to move on to someone else in a month, but weirder things had already happened. "Presuming you abide by the rules, it will end when we get back from Resembool."

Charlie nodded. He didn't look happy, but he looked resigned. "Yes, sir. Sounds fair."

Alyse reached out and patted her son's shoulder. "Charlie I-"

"Look, I know you don't hate me," Charlie cut her off sharply. His face flushed. "And you're disappointed in me. I let you down, and I've been stupid. I know that. I deserve this. Can we please not discuss it?"

Alyse looked startled, but she nodded. "Sure. We don't have to discuss it right now."

Cal bit his tongue. Snapping at his son wouldn't make anything better. The boy, faced with his mother, looked nervous and ashamed.

After dinner, Charlie went up to his room to work on the schoolwork that would be due when he returned to school the following week. Cal and Alyse snuggled up on the couch in the living room-with the cat, who was very insistent on petting- and spent a little while just cuddling in each other's arms. The television was on, but Cal couldn't have said later what they watched. It didn't matter.

When Alyse started to droop, which wasn't very late since she was still recovering, they went upstairs, and Cal helped her change for bed. Alyse stiffened slightly as he slid the sweater off her back, his hand touching the side of her bandages.

"I'm sorry. Did I hurt you?" he paused, concerned.

Alyse shook her head. "No, sorry. I'm just… I'm not used to feeling so self-conscious."

Cal set the sweater down on the bed. Standing behind her, he placed his hands gently on her shoulders. "To me, you will always be beautiful. Physically, as well as what's inside." He kissed the side of her neck. "What matters to me is that you're alive, and you're here, and I'll have years more of enjoying the pleasure of your company. Which I still don't deserve," he added with a soft chuckle. "Your hair will grow back… and believe it or not, I did not marry you for your breasts."

Alyse chuckled, and turned her head, smiling over her shoulder. "Given your wandering hands, I do find that a little hard to believe."

"And as soon as it won't hurt you, they'll keep wandering, I promise."

"Slow down, lover boy. I need to get my pajamas on first."

Cal chuckled and reached for the nightgown he had pulled out earlier, which also buttoned up the front. It had been hidden near the back of the closet. "Here we go."

Alyse took one look and smiled. "Wow, that's old. I don't think I've worn it since I was breastfeeding Charlie."

"Are you trying to make the nightgown feel old, or me?" Cal teased as he helped her into it.

"The nightgown of course. I wouldn't want to hurt your fragile feelings." Alyse moved away from him before he could come around to do up the buttons. "Hold on, I need to check my bandaging before bed."

"Here, let me help," Cal followed her into the bathroom.

"I don't need to change it," Alyse replied with a small shake of her head. "Just make sure it's in place."

Cal stopped in the doorway, and just watched as Alyse carefully checked her bandages, then buttoned her nightgown. He had a feeling it would be a while before he saw her chest again. "All okay?"

She turned away from the mirror and nodded. "All okay."

"Great, then come here," he held out his arms, "Because tonight you're going to be cuddled like you've never been cuddled before."

She slid easily into his waiting arms. "This, I can't wait to see."

 **February 15** **th** **, 1986**

Ian couldn't have written it better if he'd tried! He was in a great mood as he walked onto the set Monday morning with a copy of _Star-light_ in his hand. Bella Yardley's exclusive on AFA night was a multi-page spread with color images and snippets from interviews on the carpet with big names, and of course the winners. Much to Ian's delight, she'd given an entire two paragraphs exclusively to talking about Bonnie. She had called Bonnie "charming, natural, friendly, and stylish" and even commented on the fact that the designer was beautiful enough to model herself, but tastefully modest. Bella had gone on to compliment Bonnie's work for both her win, and the selection in stores, before ending with the juicy tidbit Ian had been expecting.

 _Perhaps the most interesting news to our readers, however, may be the fact that this talented woman has perhaps snagged one of the most eligible bachelors in Amestris. Miss Walsh arrived at tonight's awards with none other than Ian Elric on her arm, and during her acceptance speech thanked him, even referring to him as her boyfriend. When asked on the carpet how she got Ian as her date, she responded with this lovely little enigmatic reply. "He begged."_

Ian liked that, at that point, she went on to discuss the next award winner instead of diving into the speculation he was sure would be all astir from that alone. He expected it to come up in interviews sometime in the near future. That was all right, he knew exactly how to answer them. _Of course I begged. Have you seen my girlfriend?_ His intelligent, talented, beautiful girlfriend, who had told the entire world-or at least anyone who bothered to follow the AWAs or Ian's career- that they were officially an item. Afterwards, Bonnie had admitted that she knew it would probably start a press-storm, but that she had accepted it would have to come eventually; why not let it come at a high point when she could control it?

His very sensible girlfriend. Ian was humming as he walked up to the open door of wardrobe. He stopped when he heard voices. Bonnie's voice… and Angie's. Stepping up to the door, he peeked inside.

Angie had planted herself in front of Bonnie and was holding a copy of the same magazine. "—really expect people to believe this garbage?"

Bonnie, who was holding an armload of costumes, looked irritated. "Which part don't you believe?" she asked with measured calm. "That I won, that I'm talented? One is a fact, and the other is the writer's opinion. I don't control what they write."

"Oh, please." Angie snorted in disgust. "This bullshit about you dating Ian of course."

"You were _at_ the awards, weren't you?" Bonnie asked, even though she and Ian knew full well that Angie had attended. Anyone who considered themselves to be anyone in the business had been there. Angie, however, hadn't been nominated for anything personally, though one of her films—in which she had played a supporting role—had been up for best picture.

"Ian has escorted dozens of women to events. That doesn't mean he's dated them all."

"Like you," Bonnie nodded. Angie's face turned red. "Unlike you, however, I don't lie about my personal life. For once, a reporter has written a completely factual report of what someone said. Imagine that?"

Angie slammed the magazine down on the nearest flat surface. "I told you not to mess with Ian."

"And I don't care what you said," Bonnie retorted, scowling. "You don't have any authority to dictate what Ian does with his time, or who he does it with. You're not his girlfriend. You're not even his _friend._ Just because you played romantic co-stars on a film doesn't give you any claim to him."

"Oh, and you do?"

Bonnie's expression steeled, and Ian almost intervened. He knew that face. That was a good old country _you don't mess with me or my man_ face. Thankfully, Bonnie knew better than to deck Angie in the face. "You being blind to what goes on around you isn't my problem, and I don't owe you an explanation. Now get out of my way, and if you mess with my boyfriend again, we'll deal with this the old fashioned way."

For a moment, Angie looked unsure, then her expression schooled to one of haughty disdain. "Peasant. How dare you speak to me like-"

"-like what?" Ian asked as he stepped through the door. "An equal? You're right Angie, how dare she give you more respect than you deserve."

Angie started to smile, then realized he had insulted her. "Ian! What a nice-"

"Shut it," Ian cut her off, letting his anger show on his face. "I heard the whole conversation. So, let's get this straight once and for all."

"But-"

"Listen up," he growled, his voice dropping. "You're a selfish bitch and I'm sick of you mucking about with my life. I don't like you. We're not friends, and we never have been. We're colleagues, nothing more."

Angie smirked. "You mean to tell me you didn't enjoy having your hands all over me?"

"Not really, no," Ian replied without hesitation. "A body doesn't make a person, and your personality is as ugly as they come."

He wondered if Angie's eyes could go any wider. "How _dare you_ —"

"What, be honest?" he sniffed derisively. "You wouldn't know truth if it bit you. Now listen up. If you _ever_ talk like that to Bonnie again, or stick your nose into my business, I will not only take your behavior to Tanner, I'll take it to the media."

Angie glanced over at Bonnie. "You must really put out to get this kind of loyalty."

 _And...line crossed._ Ian felt his temper snap, but he forced it down. "That's it. You're done here. Get out."

"I have to get my—"

"Out!" he bellowed, pointed towards the door hard enough that whoever was coming in stopped dead. He didn't look to see who it was. He no longer cared. "Just because _you're_ easy you think everyone else is as pathetic as you are. For your information, Bonnie didn't _win me over_ by sleeping with me. We haven't even _done_ that. She's kind, and smart, and honest, and hardworking, and she _cares_ about people." He stepped forward, and Angie took a step back, running into the table behind her. Her expression had turned to horror. "She's everything you're _not_ and maybe, if you want someone to love you one day, you should try taking notes instead of putting her down, cause _she's_ the whole package. You...you're just a face with a bad attitude."

There were tears glistening at the edge of Angie's eyes as she pushed past him and ran for the door. He let her go.

Behind him, a small crowd started cheering and clapping.

Ian took a long, deep breath, and turned to Bonnie. "Are you okay?"

She looked stunned, but not upset. "Yeah, I'm fine. I've just never seen you lay into someone like that."

"I'm sick of her bullshit," Ian admitted, glancing at the door, where people were now coming in. It looked like half of make-up and wardrobe had heard him. No wonder they were clapping. Rafael gave him a thumbs up as he passed. "I had to put her in her place."

"And how." Bonnie sidled up to him, arms still full of costumes she had been taking somewhere. She leaned over and up and kissed him briefly. "Thanks, though what took you so long? You said you hear the whole conversation."

Ian smiled. "What can I say? I like a girl who can defend herself. You didn't _need_ me. I just got sick of listening to Angie run her mouth."

"Well, need you or not, I appreciate what you said." Bonnie smiled coyly. "Don't make plans, handsome. Tonight is now officially date night."

His stomach flipped, but it was a pleasant sensation. "Don't worry. I'm all yours."

* * *

It wasn't the first time Charlie had ever been in trouble at school, but being suspended had certainly been the worst, and highest profile. The last time he'd spent an afternoon in detention had been in middle school, before he and Gill had landed girlfriends and had better things to do than pull pranks and crack jokes in class.

So while there were a couple of people glancing his way on Monday, for the most part school was business-as-usual. It was a large school, and Charlie was hardly the highest profile kid in the building. By lunch, he knew that while he'd been out, there had been two guys suspended for fighting in the middle of the cafeteria, and another had been caught smoking out behind the gym.

He kept his head down, did his classwork, and tried not to make eye contact with teachers. The worst part of the day was that, by lunch, he hadn't received a note from Shelby, and she had studiously avoided even glancing his direction during classes.

Charlie felt his heart lift briefly when he saw Marlena crossing the cafeteria not long after he and Gill sat down to eat, but it dropped quickly as he saw Marlena's face. "I've got an message… it's a verbal one," she added when Charlie held out his hand. "Shelby's parents went through her locker and…they found a couple of the notes."

Charlie's stomach sank to join his heart. "Which ones?"

"I don't know, but they're really mad. They told her that if she doesn't stop writing you, they'll move her to _another school_." Her eyes were wide, and he could tell she wasn't bluffing, which meant Shelby's parents weren't bluffing. "They mean it."

He couldn't let that happen. _Shit…shit. SHIT!_ Charlie took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. "Thanks, Marlie. I… I don't even know what to tell her." Doing anything that would get Shelby moved would kill her. She was involved in so many activities, and on committees, and her friends were here… starting over again mid-junior year in high school would be a horror story. He couldn't do that. "Tell her…I love her, and I promise not to do anything to get her in trouble."

Marlena looked like that might be the sweetest thing she had ever heard. She smiled briefly at Gill. "You could learn to talk like that, you know." Then she turned and headed back to her table.

"Thanks, man," Gill quipped. "Showing me up in front of my girl."

He was kidding, Charlie knew. He shrugged, sighed, and went back to his food. "Fat lot of good it's done me. What am I going to do?"

"What can you do?" Gill asked sensibly, as he picked up a fry. "You heard Marlie. You can't even send notes. Best thing you can do is lie low for a while, wait for it all to blow over. Then maybe you can do something."

"Funny," Charlie said around a bite of his burger. "That's exactly the advice my _dad_ gave me."

* * *

 _Author's Note 9/12/2016: Another chapter at last! A nice long one. This school year has hit with a vengeance. I've got a third again the number of students I had last year, and some research-heavy courses to work on of my own. Gotta love Grad School. All good work mostly, but time intensive! We're almost through this one. :) Thanks for your patience._


	29. Chapter 29

**March 13** **th** **, 1986**

With a wedding in only two days, everything around his house was chaos, and Edward was enjoying every moment of it. Family poured in from all over Amestris, and his house was full of them, as well as Raina's parents. Alphonse and Elicia, Gracia, James and Krista, Ethan and Lia, Aeddan, Lily and Randy, Will and Ren, Cal and Alyse, Charlie, and Gloria were all crammed into his house. Even Franz was taking a brief leave to come down, though he would only be there for the day of the wedding, arriving in the morning, and leaving the following day.

The overflow were staying at Aldon and Cassie's, which was also full with Coran's family of four, Ian, Bonnie, Callie, and Ted.

In fact, the only family members not making it were those who lived too far away to make it by train: Minxia and Thrakos, and Eamon, since he was also in Pylos for school, and Michio and Kamika, who were in Xing.

While everyone was pouring into town, Ed was unsurprised when Urey asked to borrow his car to move his last couple of boxes of personal belongings out of the house, and over to the one that would now be Raina's _and_ his.

"We'll miss having you underfoot." Ed grinned as he handed Urey the keys. "You be sure to bring the whole family by for dinner often."

"I'm sure I can still manage to bug you." Urey took the keys. "You've still got the best alchemy library outside of Central."

"Given what's in it, some might argue mine's better." Ed's had all the stuff no one was supposed to know about.

"Which is why I'll be by often." Urey hefted a box into his arms and headed towards the door.

"You just keep coming up with reasons for us to visit, don't you?" Alphonse asked as he joined Ed.

"Don't look at me. Urey's the one getting married," Ed chuckled. "Though I keep telling you, you could just move in."

"If we weren't needed in Central, we probably would." Al shrugged. "Though I no longer think you were half-crazy to build a house this big. You've finally managed to fill it to capacity."

"Darn, you've stumbled upon my real master plan of opening a bed and breakfast."

Al fake-punched him in the arm. "I'm not paying you to stay here."

Ed shrugged. "Hey, you could have moved in, remember?"

"Will you two stop it?" Winry stepped up between them, placing one arm around each of their shoulders. "I hate to interrupt brotherly bonding, but there are beds to be made, a garden to decorate, and lunch to be prepared!"

"Feels like I've moved in already," Al snickered.

"All right, Winry, we're on it," Ed promised, turning to kiss his wife on the cheek. "Let's start in the yard, Al."

"Sure thing." Al followed him outside.

Thankfully, it was a bit early in the year for weeds, but that didn't mean Ed didn't have yardwork to do. He had started on it over a month ago, but there wasn't much to do before things started growing.

Thankfully the forecasted weather for the next few days was warm, with rain developing later in the week well after the wedding, because Ed intended to cheat a little on the garden. With Al's help, they could urge the spring flowers into blooming just a little earlier, and more numerously, than they would otherwise. "This is what we've got to work with," he said, gesturing to a box of seeds and bulbs.

Al crouched down and started looking through the box with interest. "White and yellow daffodils, blue crocuses, scilla, small blue irises," he smiled. "This is lovely."

"Raina's favorite color is blue. They went with a light-blue-and-yellow color scheme." Ed shrugged, grinning. "The forsythia bushes are already starting to bloom, so I don't think it will take much to turn this place into a colorful haven in two days."

"Does Winry know you're using alchemy for this?"

"She practically ordered me to," Ed admitted. "She told me to make this yard perfect _no matter what._ "

"That does sound like a ringing endorsement," Al agreed as he rolled up his shirtsleeves. "Where should we start?"

"By the trellis," Ed suggested, gesturing to the arch that led between the general flower gardens, with the open lawns and room for chairs, into Ed's smaller Xingese style meditation garden. "They'll be getting married there, so the color needs to start there and frame everything."

"I couldn't have said it better myself."

Ed turned, and could not help smiling wider as his niece joined them. "It's nice to have the approval of an expert," he said to Alyse. He had been especially glad that she had recovered enough to make the journey. He held out the rough sketch he had made of the yard and where they were planning to put the flowers. "Would you mind taking a look at this before we start?"

Alyse's face lit up with pleasure as she almost snatched the diagram out of his hands. "I'd love to!" As she looked his plan over with the intense concentration of someone used to such things, Ed couldn't help admiring how much better she looked than when he had visited Central earlier that winter. With just family around, she had forgone the wig, letting her own slowly-returning hair show. It was barely an inch long, but it was cute on her; the way everything had always been cute on Alyse, in a pixyish kind of way. The long knit rose-colored sweater she was wearing fell just right, and had enough bulk, that it wasn't even obvious that she'd had to have surgery. This was, he suspected, entirely the idea. "This looks great, Uncle Ed," she finally looked up from the page. "It's very nicely balanced, and it will draw the eye right to the center."

Ed took the sheet back. "That was the idea. Glad to know it works."

"Can I help?" Alyse asked hopefully.

"Are you up for it?" Al asked, not hiding his concern.

"I'm not planning to use alchemy, I'd just like to be useful," Alyse assured them. "It doesn't take that much energy to put seeds and bulbs in little holes in the soil."

"Of course you can help." Ed handed her a trowel. He understood how she felt. Alyse didn't like to sit still and do nothing any more than the rest of the family, and she'd been no better than an invalid for months. "The garden's prettier already."

"Flattery will get you nowhere." Alyse was clearly pleased though. She took several bulbs and a kneeling pad, and went over to one corner of the garden near the trellis arch. She knelt down and got right to work.

"You maybe. It usually works for me," Cal commented as he came down the porch stairs and stopped between Ed and Al, watching his wife. Ed had noticed, ever since their arrival the night before, that anywhere Alyse went, Cal was sure to follow within a few minutes.

"It had better, or you have other problems." Ed chuckled. "She's all right out here you know." The weather was nice and warm for a late morning in March. The sun was out, and there was only a hint of a breeze.

"I know. That doesn't mean I can keep myself from checking," Cal admitted.

"I know how you feel." Ed said, even as Al nodded in understanding as well. They had all experienced the agony of almost losing their wives, and more than once. Being overprotective came from experience. "So, how's the lovesick teenager?"

Cal's soft expression darkened a little, before it turned to resignation. "He's upstairs, trying to pretend he's not bored out of his mind." He looked at Ed. "He finishes being grounded when we get home. I just wish I knew if this mess was going to blow over, or if there's something else we should be doing."

Ed knew that look. It read _you dealt with Tore as a teenager, how did you do it without going nuts?_ "If he's gotten the message, than he won't do anything else imminently stupid until he's old enough to do it legally," he suggested. "There are worse things that he could have done, or that could have happened to him, but often the best teacher is the mistake itself. Tore came back from his trip a lot more mature than he left. He still wasn't ready for a lot of what he had to deal with in the war with Drachma, or afterwards, but he would never have made it that far if he hadn't learned. Though this particular problem was not one of those things we had to deal with."

Cal nodded. "I've suggested he find an after school job, something he can do this summer too. I figured it might give him something productive to do; keep him busy."

"Not a bad idea." Al agreed before going over to join Alyse, but on the other side of the arch.

"A little responsibility may be just what he needs," Ed agreed. "Got any particular jobs in mind?"

"He's been working on cars with his best friend for a few years now. He's got some decent mechanic skills, so I thought he might be able to get a job at a local garage doing the basics." Cal shrugged. "Oil changes, minor repairs, that kind of thing. It would also give him a chance to learn from the pros."

Ed like that idea. It was also good hard physical activity, and he'd be earning money. "Sounds like something he'd enjoy, and a good way to keep out of trouble."

"That's my biggest concern." Cal sighed audibly. "He's a little too much like me sometimes. Anything that keeps him away from women for a while can only be a good thing."

Ed couldn't help but laugh. "You know, when you first joined the alchemy program, I remember thinking the same thing about you."

"Oh really?" Cal looked at him curiously.

"You were eighteen, and you couldn't even get through an alchemy discussion without a quip or clever remark, and flirting with your female classmates." It was a long time ago now, but Ed would never forget that class of students. Sara had been one of them. "Your superiors refused to assign you to any mission or team under any of our female alchemists, because they were afraid you'd flirt with the wrong one and get your face caved in."

Cal chuckled. "Well, I might have," he admitted.

"Half the others were afraid you'd sleep with anyone assigned to work with you."

"I didn't do _that._ " But Cal looked a little uncomfortable. Ed knew full well that a lot of eligible women _had_ slept with the young, brash, handsome Whitewater Alchemist in his youth. He wasn't the only soldier with that reputation. "They can't have been too worried about me."

"Nah, but I did get a few requests to have you transferred up to Briggs."

"Why Briggs?"

"They were hoping you'd be foolish enough to flirt with General Armstrong." Alex's sister would have flattened him, chopped him up, and fed the pieces to a bear.  
Cal snickered. "I prefer not to flirt with danger. If you'll excuse me, I've got a better idea." He joined Alyse, and Ed watched as she handed him a couple of flower bulbs and he started helping her with the planting.

* * *

Winry loved seeing her house full of family, and while she regretted that so much of Al's side of the family was too far flung to come, having her house overflowing with life and happiness was too enjoyable for her to waste time on regrets.

Aldon and Cassie sat on the couches with Raina's parents, chatting socially. Callie, Gloria, and Lily were talking excitedly at the table over the plate of vegetables Winry had put out for people to nibble while lunch preparations were underway in the kitchen in the experienced hands of Gracia, Elicia, Lia, and Ren. Lily, already over half way through her pregnancy, looked radiant and happy. Winry was sure the discussion was about the twins. No matter what was being talked about, someone brought it up within a few minutes.

Thankfully Lily didn't seem to mind that almost all anyone seemed to want to talk about the past couple of days with her was her pregnancy, the babies, and the joys of impending parenthood. Upstairs and downstairs and even meeting on the stairs or in the hallways, there were little conversations and people stopping to socialize. While much of the family was staying at Aldon and Cassie's everyone had converged, almost by default, on her house.

The children were all playing outside in the yard on the side opposite the gardens, under the watchful eyes of Deanna and Gale. Ian was somewhere with Bonnie, and Winry had given up trying to keep track of every one of her family members.

Finally, an elaborate spread of make-it-yourself salad and sandwich fixings that could have been its own three-course meal was laid out on the counter, along with a huge pot of cheddar-and-broccoli soup, and lunch was on. As people had time, they filed up, grabbed food, and vanished. Even Ed, Al, Cal, and Alyse came in from the yard to eat, before the boys vanished back outside, and Alyse went upstairs for a nap.

After lunch, the table became decoration central. Raina's decoration plans had been very simple, but she had been quite happy to have additional help when other members of the family suggested hand-made bows, floral arrangements, and other little decorations that would make the day beautiful and accentuate how special it was. Just because it wasn't Urey's first marriage didn't mean they were going to let this wedding be anything less than spectacular.

Raina and Urey arrived back from moving the last of Urey's things to their house about the time the craft supplies were carefully arranged on the table for the most efficient making. "This looks amazing," Raina grinned as she took a seat at one end of the table and reached for a length of ribbon and some glue.

"How's the house?" Winry asked Urey, who was watching with amusement.

"It's looking great." Urey smiled. "We've got Yurian's room all set up. I can't wait to show it to him."

"Are you letting him see it before the wedding?"

"Nope. He gets to move in the same time I do. Then we can start life as a family, together."

Winry put her arm around him for a quick grandmotherly squeeze. "I'm so happy for you. All of you. I know you'll be happy."

"How do you know that, Granny?"

"Experience. I've watched an awful lot of relationship over the years, and I'm pretty good at telling which are the good ones." She chuckled fondly as she let go of him again.

"You're right together. It's a natural fit, not just for you two as a couple, but for Yurian too, and that's what's important."

Urey nodded in agreement. "Raina and I have talked a lot lately about house rules, and how we're going to do things as parents. It helps that she knows a _lot_ about kids, and we agree on most things so far. Not that it's that hard when we're dealing Yurian. He's a great kid."

"You'll probably have more to talk about if you have more," Winry suggested gently, trying not to pry, but her curiosity was getting the better of her.

"Raina wants more…at least one." Urey didn't sound surprised, or particularly bothered by this.

"Do you?" Winry asked. One of the biggest strains the last months of his relationship with Cayla, before her death, was Urey's own doubts about fatherhood. He hadn't been ready then, and it had caused a lot of emotional pressure not just for him, but for the whole family, when he had refused to try and be a father to his newborn son.  
Urey looked like he knew what was going through her head as he smiled. "Yeah, I do."

* * *

Charlie was bored out of his mind. He had finished every assignment due by the end of Spring break, and read both of the novels he had brought with him on the trip already. Now here he was, lying on the bed in the guest room he occupied for the visit, staring at the ceiling, which, he had already noted, had a subtle swirl in the plaster that looked sort of like a seagull… if seagulls crashed into waves instead of flying over them.

So he lay there, eyes closed and the window open, listening to the breeze outside. It almost sounded like Shelby's breathing…

"Hey, you awake?"

Charlie opened his eyes to find Aeddan standing in the doorway. "Yeah."

"You wanna do something?"

"I'm still grounded."

"Yeah well, there's plenty to do around here that won't break the rules." Aeddan grinned. "Grandpa Ed said we could use the pool table upstairs. You know the one in the room off the library."

Pool table? "I didn't even know this place had a pool table," Charlie admitted, sitting up. That certainly sounded like more fun than lying around all afternoon avoiding conversations he didn't want to have. Aeddan was the only guy in the family nearly the same age.

"Grandpa keeps it in his game room." Aeddan shrugged, grinning. "Kids aren't allowed in there. He said we were men enough to use it."

Charlie couldn't help wondering what else Edward Elric would keep in a private room that was off limits to kids, besides his alchemy workshop, which he knew was also off-limits. Charlie didn't really know any alchemy, but he wasn't dumb enough to go messing around with anything in a lab that might explode. "Let's go check it out," he agreed.  
The two boys went downstairs first, where lunch was still laid out, and Charlie piled a plate with two thick-stacked sandwiches stuffed with toppings, and grabbed a cola, before they went up to library, and through it into the room beyond, that clearly belonged entirely to Edward Elric as his own, personal space in his house.

While there were the same large windows along the wall that lit the rest of the house, they had thick red curtains that could be pulled to block out the light, and the walls were off-white at the top, but dark wood paneling below. Even in here, there was a bookshelf full of reading material, but other than that, it was part museum, part game room. Old newspaper clippings, photographs, and various souvenirs and artifacts from a very adventurous life lined the walls and another set of shelves. Charlie couldn't help but wonder what the collection would cost to a museum. He didn't even know what all of the things were, though he was fascinated by a small collection of mechanical parts that he couldn't identify. The part numbers on them weren't in a language he had ever seen before. They didn't look like car or train parts. Many of the photos on the walls were in places he didn't recognize either, though most were taken in Amestris, or other places around the world that were easily identified.

There was a large pool table dominating the main space in the room, though thick old comfortable leather chairs around a round wooden table made it clear the room was intended for other games as well. Charlie thought he knew now where his father and the others usually retreated at night when they came to visit. There was a large old radio in one corner, and a record player.

"This place is pretty cool," Charlie admitted as he put his food down on the table, making sure the cola went on one of the stone coasters. He didn't want his Great-Uncle mad at him. Despite being clearly a "man space," it was clean, and the old table looked like it was probably very expensive. "I wonder if he keeps anything to drink up here."  
That got him a suspicious look from Aeddan, and he wished he hadn't said anything. Aeddan wasn't that much younger than him, he'd be fifteen next month, and he was only a year behind him at school.

"Doubt it," Aeddan replied. "Grandpa almost never drinks." He pulled two cues off the rack and handed one to Charlie.

"I don't either," Charlie admitted, hoping he hadn't given Aeddan the wrong idea. Not that he hadn't been _tempted_ as crappy as his life had been lately, but he was in enough trouble as it was.

Aeddan looked slightly embarrassed. "Sorry…I didn't mean…"

"It's okay." Charlie sighed as he moved around the table, motioning for Aeddan to break. "I've heard the rumors at school." Most of them were bogus, but given what he and Shelby had been suspended for, the majority of the rumors had to do with their sex lives, and the basic facts regarding their parents forbidding them to see each other were the primary topic of those rumors. When anyone bothered. The only reason it hadn't died yet, he was sure, was because Shelby played such a prominent role in student government, chairing several committees and running clubs. She was like Gloria had been at school-and his mom, so he'd been told; the responsible, straight A student who wasn't the President, but who they couldn't get along without.

"Are any of them true?" Aeddan asked as he chalked his cue and lined up a shot.

"Just the most boring ones," Charlie replied as he watched the pool balls scatter across the table. "Yeah, we did it. Yeah, her parents hate my guts. Yeah, it's impossible to talk to each other…and yeah, I hate it."

Aeddan winced. "Sorry. I've been telling some of the guys to shut their yaps at school. Some of the rumors are really nuts."

He'd been standing up for him? Charlie hadn't realized he had that much of a friend in his second cousin. "I appreciate that," he said, honestly touched.  
Aeddan smiled as he lined up another shot, and sank two balls. "Hey, no problem. Anything in particular you'd like squashed…or spread? They tend to take my word for truth since we're related."

Now there was a useful offer. "Anything that plays up public sympathy?" Charlie suggested as Aeddan circled and lined up another shot. "You know, we're both suffering because we can't be together and we haven't broken the ban on seeing each other. Just anything that will make people go easier on Shelby. Me, I don't care. I've been in and out of trouble at school for years, no one thinks anything about it, but she doesn't deserve to get a bum rap over this."

Aeddan missed and stepped back so Charlie could take a turn. "I spread that, and half the freshman girls are going to want to date you for the sentiment alone."  
Charlie lined up on the six ball and sank it. "Tempting as that might be, I'm not giving up yet. Shelby and I will find a way to be together, even if we have to outwait her parents."

"You're starting to sound like those sappy old romantic plays they make us read in Literature."

"Maybe a little," Charlie admitted. He hoped not too much. Many of those plays had tragic endings.

 **March 14** **th** **, 1986**

"You sure you'll have fun tonight?" Ian asked Bonnie. He was looking forward to going out with his brothers, but he didn't want to leave Bonnie with nothing to do, or to an evening of awkward conversation.

"Of course I will," Bonnie assured him, smiling. "Deanna promised to tell me all about what you were like as a kid."

"Well, I was pretty fascinating," Ian wagged his eyebrows and kissed her. "I'll miss you."

"It's one evening." Bonnie shook her head ruefully. "You go have fun with your brothers."

"Well, we probably won't have _too_ much fun," Ian teased as he let go of her. "We're leaving all you beautiful ladies behind after all." And coming back to them as well. He doubted there would be much drinking either. Urey had been more interested in spending the evening with his brothers than any real bachelor party. He'd already had one of those before.

Bonnie's expression softened. "I'm sure it'll be fine." She paused, as if she wanted to say more but was considering her words. "I mean it. Have fun and…"

She was trying to say something. "Bonnie, what is it?"

His girlfriend looked away, embarrassed. "I just… I trust you."

"Well, I know that," he replied, trying to meet her eyes. She was confusing him. "I mean, I'm grateful. Is that what you wanted to tell me?"

She nodded, then looked up at him again. "I guess I just don't want you to change who you are just to please me."

Well, that was out of nowhere. "I haven't. I mean, I know I'm not the same guy I was a few years ago, but that's my choice. Did I do something wrong?"

"No!" Bonnie shook her head vigorously. "I just meant… I've blown this out of proportion haven't I?" She sighed. "Ian… all I was trying to say is that I appreciate that you're so careful about my feelings, and making me uncomfortable… but I'm not going to freak out if you have a drink every so often. I mean, if you feel like it."

Had she just… _wow._ A few months ago, he might have shouted for joy. Not because he'd ever really cared that much about drinking, but because he liked being in charge of himself. Now, he melted a little inside, because he knew what it meant for her to say it, and the courage it was probably taking. Her father had suffered from drinking problems in the past. That, and her ex-jerks… He kissed her again. "That means a lot to me… the trust, not the beer," he clarified, chuckling. "I'm proud of you."

Bonnie's face flushed under her freckles. "Thanks. Now _go_ …" she shooed him off.

* * *

Coran couldn't remember the last time he and his brothers had hung out, just the five of them. They all had their own lives, and while they saw each other fairly often, it was usually no more than two or three of them together, with him, Ian, and Ted living in Central, and Urey and Reichart living in Resembool. Ted's missions kept him bouncing all over the place. Ian's shooting schedule did much the same. It was a rare occasion when they were all in the same place at all, usually for weddings, like this one, though it had been a few years since the celebration had been for one of them.

He was glad it was Urey. His middle-most brother deserved happiness after all he'd been through. As they all sat around a table at the local bar, eating and laughing, Coran enjoyed seeing all four of his younger brothers smiling, and enjoying a girl-and-child free night. Gale and the boys -Gavin and Damian were now eleven and eight years old- were spending the evening with Deanna and their horde at Reichart's place. Yurian was also there, so all the cousins could play. Coran suspected Raina was there as well. Ted wasn't seeing anyone, and he wasn't sure where Ian's girlfriend had chosen to spend the evening.

"Where's Bonnie tonight?" he asked Ian curiously.

"Getting every embarrassing story about my childhood from Deanna," Ian chuckled, though he looked nervous. "She wanted to hang out with the girls. I suppose I should take that as a good sign, but I'm not sure she needs blackmail ammunition."

Coran grinned. "Let her get used to being part of the family. All the better for your chances when you finally convince her to marry you." Watching the two of them together, Coran had no doubt that they _could_ make it as a couple, or that his brother was set on having Bonnie. He just hoped that the girl saw it the same way.

"We'll see how long that takes," Ian commented, sipping from his bottle. He seemed distracted. "I can't rush things."

Coran grinned. "I know how that goes. When I first tried to get Gale to go out with me she was downright hostile. Took me a while to convince her I wasn't like every other guy out there who wanted her body."

"You convinced Gale you didn't want her body?" Ian looked skeptical.

"Nah. I just finally managed to get her to believe the truth: that I liked her mind and personality too. I'd have been lying if I'd tried to pretend she wasn't hot."  
"That's good, because no one would have believed you."

"Including me." In Coran's completely biased opinion, Gale was even more beautiful now than when they had first met. She certainly smiled more, and the softer side of her personality, the side reserved for him, and for their two sons, could melt his heart instantly.

Across the table, a burst of laughter caught Coran's attention. He guessed that Reichart and Urey had said something to their baby brother because Ted's face had turned red behind his bottle of beer. "What did I miss?"

Ian snickered. "Our baby brother just admitted, on his _twenty-fourth birthday,_ that he's the only one of us who hasn't gotten laid."

"That wasn't an invitation to find me a girl," Ted commented a little shortly, and Coran had the feeling that was the suggestion that had made his youngest brother blush…and then wondered how much Reichart and Urey-of all people- had drunk tonight to even suggest it.

"Couldn't hurt," Urey chuckled. "Art got Deanna, and he's the one who talked me up to Raina in the first place."

"Yeah, there's still a few pretty single women in town," Reichart nodded his head. "You remember Wendy Liecher don't you? She was in your class in school."

"Yeah, I remember Wendy." Ted looked curious, but also wary. Coran could understand why.

"Well, I have it from a reliable source that she's currently single and looking."

"Who's your reliable source?"

"Deanna."

For a moment, Ted looked like he was considering this news, then he shook his head and took a swig of his drink. "Forget it. I'm going back to Central in two days. No way am I starting anything that could turn into complicated long distance."

Coran saluted Ted with his glass. "My youngest brother speaks with wisdom."

"And my oldest brother speaks like a bad Xingese film dub," Ted grinned back at him.

"Or Grandpa," Ian chimed in. "He's full of old sayings."

"And a lot of them are from Xingese alkahestry texts," Ted retorted.

"This is true," Urey sided with Ted. "I've read them."

As the two of them rapidly devolved into which one could come up with the most obscure yet pompous sounding old saying, Reichart turned to Coran and Ian. "I think we should make sure Urey spends the night at home with you guys."

Coran nodded. He hadn't thought to ask where Urey was spending the night. If his room at Grandpa and Granny's was still open or if he had been planning to spend the night in the new place. It was generally not considered wise to let the new bride see her groom in a post bachelor-evening state, even if they weren't doing anything particularly wild. "No worries. Mom's still got a couple of spare beds open, and set up for guests."

"Should I spend the night instead of going home?" Reichart joked. "You know, just for Mom's nostalgia."

"Somehow, I think Mom would prefer to remember us as her semi-well-behaved young men," Ian snickered.

Semi indeed. Coran shook his head. "You know, we should really do something extra special for Mom as a thank you for letting us all _live_ to adulthood."

"Mom and Dad both," Ian added.

Yeah, there were days Coran was grateful their father hadn't believed in beatings. He probably would have received several for some of his antics as a teenager. What, however, would be a big enough thank you for everything their parents had put up with raising a house full of rowdy boys? "We'll think of something."

"We could start with all just being presentable tomorrow," Ian suggested with an amused grin. "Right now, the big shot movie star is the most sober person at the table."  
Reichart eyed Ian suspiciously. "What are you even drinking?"

"This?" Ian held out the bottle and Coran could see the root beer label. "I swapped over two hours ago. At least one of us should be able to _walk_ the others home if it comes to it."

Coran didn't comment about the irony that it was Ian. His brother had been a different person ever since the accident that had killed his friend, and even more so since meeting—and now dating—Bonnie. "Good plan."

"Oh, I've got an even better one," Ian assured him, getting the attention of the whole table. "Now that the snacks have been eaten, and most of the drinks have been drunk… we should do something fun and a little crazy."

Reichart set down his empty drink. "And just what did you have in mind?"

"I dare you to see who can stand the longest under Sellers' Falls."

The waterfall in the mountain foothills wasn't far from town, on a regular walking trail, and even lit at night, but Coran was surprised Ian would even want to attempt it. Not that it wasn't something they hadn't done in their youth.

"Do you know how cold that water is this early in the year?" Reichart asked.

"Of course," Ian grinned. "That's what makes it a challenge!"

 **March 15** **th** **, 1986**

"I thought you couldn't make it!" Ed exclaimed, grabbing Tore up in a bone-crunching hug as his adoptive son stepped off the train in front of Franz in the early dawn light. They didn't see nearly enough of each other; a regret that had hit home when Tore had said that his family wouldn't be able to make it down. Charisa couldn't get off work, and with Cal and Franz leaving, someone had to take care of the State Alchemists.

"I made Emerald take care of it," Tore chuckled as he returned the hug. "Charisa sends her love, and presents," he added. "I'm just here for the day, on the President's personal detail."

"He's my "bodyguard,"" Franz grinned as he stepped off the train behind him.

Ed pulled his son-in-law into a similarly rough hug, not caring who saw them on the platform. Wedding days were for hugging. "Well it's just not a family reunion if we don't empty Central of all its critical officers."

"That's why we're here too."

Ed looked up, mildly stunned to see Trisha, Roy, and all three of their kids descending onto the platform. "You hauled the kids along on a four day train trip just for a day in Resembool?"

"Not quite," Trisha chuckled, little Sara in her arms as she hugged him. " _We're_ staying for a week and having a little family vacation."

"Please tell me Winry knows about this." Ed couldn't imagine there wasn't a plan. And it wasn't like they were _entirely_ out of space at the house, but it was close.

"Granny promised there was room," Trisha nodded. "Though I'm not sure how!"

"She works magic and defies the laws of nature." Ed shrugged. If Winry said there was room, there was room. "We should get you all back to the house, though I don't think the car will fit everyone." If he had known they were all coming, he'd have brought more than one vehicle.

"Oh it's fine," Franz grinned. "We'll put the luggage in the car, and walk. It's a gorgeous day."

" _You_ can walk," Trisha countered. "I'm not carrying Sara all the way to the house. She and I will ride back with Grandpa."

"Suit yourself," Roy chuckled, kissing his wife. "I'll try and tire out these two."

"No chance, Dad," Rosa grinned.

"I'll beat you there," Gabriel challenged his sister, taking off down the road.

"No you won't!" Rosa ran after him.

"That might be easier than I thought." Roy shrugged, following his older children.

* * *

"Well don't you boys look fresh this morning," Cassie commented as she spooned out breakfast food around her very packed dining table. Packed just the way she liked it, with Aldon, all of their children, both of her current daughters-in-law, Ian's girlfriend, and at a second table erected for the occasion, all of her grandchildren. The only reason Raina wasn't there was because she was having breakfast with her parents up at Ed and Winry's. After today, she would also be an Elric.

Cassie was actually a little surprised that her sons looked less bedraggled than she had anticipated when they had gone out the night before. She made the comment with very little sarcasm.

"We just had some good clean fun last night, Mom," Ian grinned as he took the plate she handed him. "I mean really, what else would you expect?"

"Trouble," Gale suggested.

"Hijinx," Deanna nodded.

"Stupid tricks," Callie suggested with a knowing smile at all of her older brothers.

"So nice everyone has faith in us," Reichart quipped as he nudged Deanna with his elbow.

"Yeah, all we did was some brotherly bonding," Ted nodded.

"Who won?" Aldon asked as he added sugar and cream to his coffee.

"Won?" Cassie wondered if her husband knew more about last night than she did. Her sons had come home well after she had sensibly gone to bed.

"I did," Urey grinned as he dug into his waffles. "Ian almost made it, but he started turning blue."

"Blue?" Bonnie asked.

"I'll explain later," Ian replied sideways.

"Do the girls get to know what this is about?" Cassie asked.

"Oh, I know what it is," Deanna assured her. "It's a long standing Resembool male tradition."

"Only men?" Bonnie looked curious.

"Well, it's not restricted, but most of us aren't that crazy." Deanna shrugged. "My brothers did it, sometimes to settle arguments, other times just to prove they weren't wimps. The goal is to stand under Sellers' Falls for as long as possible without getting out. The colder the water, the more the challenge is worth."

Well no wonder Urey had won. Even with all the weight he had lost, he was built the stockiest of any of her sons. Ian's fire-hot metabolism might have been the only thing that gave him any chance against his brother. "That sounds… entertaining to watch," Cassie commented as she finished serving plates and sat down at her end of the table.

"The sounds they usually make are worth it," Deanna agreed. "I'm a little sorry we missed it."

Cassie couldn't entirely hear what Reichart whispered in his wife's ear in response, but her keen motherly hearing thought she heard something about how Deanna hadn't complained last night, and she decided to pretend she hadn't heard anything, particularly given the expression on her daughter-in-law's face.

"Maybe another time," Bonnie nodded, looking at Ian. "I'm very curious about this little local tradition of yours."

"Doesn't your small charming country town have a pile of old traditions?"

"Well of course we do," Bonnie replied. "But ours usually don't involve trying to freeze extremities off."

Ian looked like he wanted to retort, but his glance at the kids table made it clear he couldn't say what he wanted to in present company. Cassie noted it was the kids he was worried about, _not_ her. "You should try it sometime," he replied. "It's actually very refreshing."

"Refreshing is good," Cassie cut in. "You'll need it today. Once we eat, there's still plenty to do up at Ed and Winry's, and Urey and Yurian need to get up there and get ready."

"Relax, Mom," Urey smiled as he filled his plate with a second giant waffle. "What are they going to do, start without us?"

* * *

"What is this?" Cal asked, stunned, but only a little annoyed, to come downstairs and find a big "Happy Birthday" banner and a plate groaning with his favorite breakfast foods.

"Your sixtieth birthday," Alyse grinned, kissing his cheek. "You really didn't think we'd forget did you?"

"No… though I was sort of hoping."

"No luck, Daddy," Gloria's impish smile made it clear this had been at least partially her doing. She was carrying what looked like a huge stack of pancakes covered with syrup and whipped cream, with a candle on it. One candle.

 _Better than burning the place down._ Cal smiled, resigning himself to the situation.

"Get over here so we can eat this amazing food," Charlie waved at him impatiently.

"All right. All right. Let's get this over with." He sat down at the head of the table, suffered through an almost-on-key rendition of a birthday song by everyone who had made it downstairs so far, which seemed to be almost _everyone_ , and blew out the candle on his pancakes.

"Well I'm glad we didn't miss this party."

Cal looked up to find the rest of Central had shown up. Tore was grinning at him. "Get on over here and help us eat it all," he chuckled waving his friend over. Franz, Roy, Trisha, the kids, it really was another miniature invasion.

"Don't mind if I do," Tore nodded, grabbing a plate. Cal doubted they had eaten much breakfast on the train.

Thankfully he did not have to eat it all himself. While there was enough prepared to feed a small army, the Elric family _was_ a small army.

Cal didn't really want to think about being sixty, other than the fact that it still made him a lot younger than the eighty-and-ninety-somethings in the building, and that he had somehow miraculously lived that long.

He was just glad Alyse was alive to see it. A month and five days out from her surgery, she was improving steadily, regaining some of her energy, and the life in her he had so desperately missed. Her hair, while still very short, was growing back, and while it was lighter than it had been, the shade was still a light brown, not too different from her original color. The difference at the moment was its tendency towards curls. Curls had always been Cal's thing, where Alyse's hair had never had much more than a defined wave. He thought she was brave, choosing not to wear the wig to this wedding, knowing there would be pictures. Alyse had told him she wasn't ashamed of her hair. She had survived… and it drew people's eyes upward.

After they had finished eating, and he just hoped he could fit into the suit he had brought for the occasion, they went back upstairs to get dressed for the wedding.  
It took Cal only a few minutes to put on his suit, which gave him time to linger on his favorite pastime, watching Alyse dress. Breasts or no breasts, his wife was a ravishing beauty. Though he had to admit, the surgeons had done their job well. The scars, such as they were, were healing nicely, and would be nearly invisible one day. As much skin as could be salvaged had been, the reconstruction might have removed all the tissue, but they had managed to leave the external pieces mostly intact. He could only assume the alchemists were to thank for that as much as the surgeons. Instead of the flat, scarred front Alyse had expected, while there was no tissue left, the nipples had been left intact, and her chest—aside from the scar lines—looked more flattened, rather than mangled or nonexistent.

The dress Alyse had bought for this occasion hid all of it, without looking like it was hiding anything. It was a one-piece dress with short sleeves, and a fitted straight-line look that hugged her curves below, and ending just below the knee. The neckline, cleverly, draped in an asymmetrical cowl-like series of ripples that gave the illusion that they were covering breasts. A matching sheer scarf completed the illusion. The soft green color of both dress and scarf brought out the vibrant green of her eyes.

"Do I look okay?"

"Of course you do." Cal replied. The question was not unexpected, though her confused expression was.

"Well you were staring."

He smiled as he crossed the room, his own dressing half-forgotten, to pull her into his arms. "How could I _not_? You're intoxicating."

That brought his favorite look of happiness to her face. "Well," she said coyly, "Then maybe I should make you let go. It wouldn't do for you to be intoxicated at the wedding."

"Oh, I can wait until after," he assured her. "But only because I know better than to mess up your outfit before we go downstairs."

"You finally learned that? I'm impressed."

"Tease." Cal kissed her briefly, then offered his arm. "Let's get downstairs and just hope you don't upstage the bride."

"I saw the dress. That is not going to happen."

Cal didn't contradict her. It wasn't an argument he would win, even if he knew she would always upstage every bride without intending to.

* * *

He wasn't entirely sure what good it would do, but when Coran saw Charlie hanging out by himself, staying out of the way in the pre-wedding chaos, he decided it was a good moment to say something. Maybe it was because he was the only person in the family who had ever been in Charlie's current situation.

"Hey there."

Charlie, who looked very uncomfortable in a suit, looked up. "Hey. Did you need something?"

Well, so much for a casual lead-in to the conversation. Coran shrugged. "Just thought I'd see how you were doing. You seem down."

Charlie shrugged uncomfortably. "I guess I'm just not into it. I keep thinking about how much I wish my… Shelby was here. She'd loved to have come to a wedding as my date." His tone was laden with bitterness.

"I think you're handling it pretty well."

Charlie snorted. "How would you know?"

"Because when it happened to me I didn't take it this well."

Charlie looked over at him warily. "What happened?"

Only one of the most embarrassing days of his life. Coran had long since forgiven his father for his reactions at the time. Of course, it had been 1965. "Dad caught us in a hayloft in the middle of the Harvest Festival. He was furious. Grounded me for a month on the spot." Coran shook his head at the memory. "The worst part was when her parents found out and she broke up with me."

"She broke up with _you?_ "

Coran nodded, giving the kid a few moments to put the scenario together in his head. It had _not_ been Gale. Maggie Spenser had gone on to date one of their other classmates, Vernon Puller. Now they were married, living in a small farming town not too far outside South City, with four kids. "Yeah, she did. Apparently public humiliation made her reconsider our relationship."

"Public humiliation."

"There are no secrets in a small town." Coran nodded.

"I hope this wasn't supposed to be a pep talk," Charlie quipped.

"You want pep?" Coran smiled. "Has she tried to break up with you?"

"Does it matter if we're forbidden to speak?"

"Trust me, if a girl wants to end it with you, she'll find a way. Sometimes they send a friend to do it for them."

Charlie's expression lightened just a little, as if he hadn't considered that.

"Don't give up yet." Coran straightened his tie and moved away from the wall. "I'd better go. If I'm late, Urey will never forgive me."

"Hey," Charlie called after him, "Thanks."

"No problem, kid."

* * *

Raina stood in front of the mirror, patiently letting her mother go through unnecessary last minute primping. It was her only daughter's wedding day. Raina was used to her mother wanting all of her special moments to be perfect.

So she stood there, in a dress that was primarily cream, but trimmed across the top of the bodice, and in streaks down the back, in forget-me-not blue. Her sheer pale-blue veil rested on her head under a crown of fresh yellow-and-light blue spring flowers, similar to the ones in the bouquet she clutched in her hands. Her dark-blond curls were artfully styled, but down, falling softly around and past her shoulders.

Her mother stepped back from settling an already perfect curl in place, and finally seemed to give up. She smiled, misty-eyed. "You look perfect."

"Thanks, Mom." Raina refused to tear up. Not yet.

"Are you ready?"

"Yes, I am." Was she nervous? A little. More than anything else though, she felt a sense of excitement, and an overwhelming happiness. In a few minutes she would be marrying a man she loved, whose son she adored, and they would be a family, with a long wonderful life together ahead of them.

"That's good," her father's voice came from behind them both as he entered the room, "Because I'd hate to have you back out now. I got a new suit just for the occasion."  
Raina turned and smiled at her father. "And you look very dashing in it," she assured him as she kissed his cheek. She was grateful to have him there, and that he was still here to see it. He griped constantly about doctors' orders, but her mother said he was following them. "I love you." She looked between both of her parents. They had always tried to give her everything to have the life she wanted, supported her dreams. She slipped her hand into her father's arm. "Let's go."

Together they walked out of the room and through the house, which was nearly empty since all of the guests were already outside, sitting in rows of chairs, and Urey was out there, waiting.

The music started, and the groomsmen and bride's maids exited. Raina's mother was escorted outside to the front row of seats.

Soon no one was waiting inside the house except for Rachel, her best friend from childhood whom she had asked to be her maid of honor, Rachel's four-year-old daughter Nancy, in a pale blue dress holding a basket of flower petals, and Yurian who was dressed in a light creamy-yellow suit with a light blue tie and vest that Raina suspected matched the suit she would soon see Urey wearing.

Yurian had the rings, and a huge smile on his face. "You look so pretty!"

Raina's heart melted. "Thank you, Yurian. You look very handsome."

"Thank you." He grinned, then hesitated only a moment before hugging her, though he was clearly trying to figure out how to do that without mussing her dress. When he let go, he looked up at her hopefully. "After you marry Daddy, I can call you Mommy, right?"

She resisted the urge to ruffle his hair. "Of course! I can't wait."

"Well you don't have to," her father chuckled deeply, gesturing towards the doors to the porch, where Edward Elric was standing, holding one open giving them a look that said _ready when you are._

Raina smiled at her father, then looked at Urey's grandfather and nodded.

She saw him nod to the musicians, and the music shifted, changing into a light, springy air that fit the mood.

"See you on the other side," Rachel grinned at her, before escorting Nancy and Yurian outside and up the aisle.

Raina waited the planned number of measures, then heard the music shift slightly, and stepped out with her father.

The garden was everything she had hoped it would be, in a riot of flowers everywhere that she was fairly certain was not entirely natural, but it was filled with a glorious abundance of brilliant blossoms that gave off a light fragrance that almost seemed to shimmer in the air.

Raina was aware of the seats to either side, filled with people, but her attention was drawn to the front, where Urey stood, looking only a little less nervous than she felt, but smiling broader than she had ever seen, his eyes locked on her. He looked dashing in a suit that did, indeed, match Yurian's. The boy was standing there now, beside his father.  
Almost in the blink of an eye, she was there, handing her flowers to Rachel, her hands taking Urey's. It was a little reassuring that his weren't any dryer than hers. He mouthed the word _beautiful._

Raina blushed. _Dashing_ she mouthed back before they turned to face the officiant. She didn't want to delay the ceremony even a moment. It made them more than a couple; it made the three of them a family. 

* * *

_Author's note 9/29/2016: Break out the hankies! *sniffle* Another momentarily happy ending. There will be more coming starting after November. Thank you everyone for your patience with updates these past few months. Life has been crazy, but it's sorting itself out._


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